Mercedes-Benz has delivered its 55,555th Citaro, one of a batch of 10 eCitaros ordered by Swedish operator Bergkvarabuss AB in the port town of Trelleborg. The company, based in Kalmar on southern Sweden’s Baltic coast, carries out all types of work including school buses, regular services and inter-city routes as well as shuttle buses to cruise ships in port towns. The company has more than 30 locations in Sweden, Denmark and Germany and has a fleet of more than 1,000 buses.
Roman Biondi, Head of Sales at Daimler Buses, said: “The Citaro is a milestone in bus history. And with the arrival of the eCitaro, its development has entered a new phase. It is our answer to the need for quiet and locally emission-free urban buses. As a result, it is also making towns a much better place to live.”
The vehicles include a number of features such as dark-tinted double-glazed side windows with additional low-slung side windows between the axles, as well as a pedestrian warning bell to make passers-by aware of the bus’ presence. USB sockets for charging mobile devices are also fitted.
The 12 battery packs and total battery capacity of 292 kWh ensure the eCitaro achieves practicable ranges even in the climes of Scandinavian winters.
After its world premiere of the first generation in 1997, the first generation Citaro sold more than 32,000 units, with the second generation model arriving in 2011, whilst last year saw the introduction of the latest eCitaro electric bus.
