The Wrightbus StreetLite Micro Hybrid range has achieved Low Carbon Emission Bus Certification and is therefore eligible for the additional fuel subsidy of 6p per km in England and 14p per km in Scotland.
A low cost hybrid system allows the bus to recuperate lost braking energy to power the vehicle electrics and its compressed air system. Wrightbus claims this improves fuel efficiency by approximately 10% achieving LCEB limits.
Wrightbus can confirm that the certification covers all the vehicle derivatives in the StreetLite range. In the official LCEB test the StreetLite MAX with Micro Hybrid achieved 711 grams of CO2 per km (Tank-to-Wheel). This correlates to a 155 tonne saving in CO2 emissions over 15 years compared to the nearest competitor in its class.
Brian Maybin, Engineering Director for Wrightbus, commented: “We are delighted to achieve the LCEB certification. We have worked with FirstGroup for two years on the development of pragmatic low cost fuel saving ideas via their annual fuel efficiency competition.”
This Micro Hybrid technology is innovative because it results in a significant further fuel saving with no compromise to the vehicle weight or driving characteristics.
This solution is productionready for Euro 5 vehicles, for immediate sale. The Micro Hybrid cost premium can be recovered in less than a year when the fuel saving and additional fuel subsidy are taken into consideration. Wrightbus says that unlike other hybrid buses, there is no additional maintenance cost later in life. As Brian said: “This system has all the pluses with none of the minuses.”
