NETHERLANDS
Airport operator the Dutch Royal Schiphol Group plans for its airports to be operated completely emission-free by 2030, and as part of its drive towards its goal, the company is focusing on creating emission-free ground operations. As such, it has now ordered 52 electric buses from MAN. From next year, the new MAN Lion’s City 12 E buses will take passengers and crews from the terminals at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport to and from their aircraft. Delivery of the first vehicles is planned for 2025.
“We are proud that MAN is further expanding its cooperation with Schiphol in the area of passenger transportation and thus making a significant contribution to the ambitious zero-emission targets of our national airport,” said Executive Director for Infrastructure at Schiphol Sybren Hahn.
Schiphol Airport chose the MAN buses for their spaciousness, efficiency, range and reliability. “Our e-bus is perfectly suited to meeting the increasing demand for passenger transport between aircraft and terminal,” said Heinz Kiess, Head of Product Marketing Bus at MAN Truck & Bus, adding: “Thanks to the intelligent space concept, our 12-metre solo bus can accommodate a maximum of up to 107 passengers.”
The buses are equipped with a lower number of seats than usual, and have maximum standing room.
Schiphol has been operating an all-electric bus fleet for 10 years, but says that the new generation of electric buses from MAN will be a decisive step forward in terms of passenger comfort while continuing to guarantee maximum reliability. “In the coming years, bus transport will become increasingly important due to ever larger aircraft, among other things. This makes innovative and sustainable vehicles all the more important for us,” added Sybren.
With over 60 million passengers, Amsterdam Schiphol Airport is the fourth largest airport in Europe. “We are proud that more and more major airports are opting for our MAN Lion’s City E. It clearly shows that the e-buses do a great job in city transport, but also in other areas of application,” emphasised Head of Sales & Product Bus at MAN Truck & Bus Robert Katzer.
