0 Mercedes-Benz Citaro for Hamburger Hochbahn: The Citaro has been in service in Hamburg for over 15 years

On 15 August 2013 Ulrich Sieg, director of operations and infrastructure at Hamburger Hochbahn AG, and Steffen Rothhardt, head of the buses division at Hamburger Hochbahn AG, commissioned the 50th Mercedes-Benz Citaro to be delivered in 2013. The anniversary vehicle symbolises the more than 15 years of trust which Hamburger Hochbahn AG has placed in the Citaro concept since 1997. Tammo Voigt, Head of Public Transport Fleet Sales at Mercedes-Benz Buses & Coaches, handed over the vehicle at the port of Hamburg. "The anniversary bus stands for the strong partnership which we have enjoyed with Hochbahn for many years now. Around 15 years ago, Hochbahn was one of the first companies to believe in the successful Citaro concept, and it has kept its faith to this day, having taken delivery of over 1000 Citaros in the meantime" said Tammo Voigt during the presentation ceremony. "With its modular design, the Citaro has always managed to combine functionality, modernness and innovation, providing the basis for a successful concept," noted Ulrich Sieg.

Custom solutions from a modular system

Hochbahn has ordered a total of 81 Citaro vehicles for 2013. The anniversary bus, a Citaro LE (LowEntry), will operate in Hamburg as a so-called express bus. In addition to the two LEs, Hochbahn has also ordered 46 Citaro Gs and 33 Citaro rigid buses. It is precisely this broad range of different variants in the modular Citaro line which is valued so highly by transport operators in the many major cities throughout the world where some 37,000 Citaros are in service. Since it went into production in 1988, the Citaro has offered a range of urban and rural buses in different lengths and equipment variants, the diversity of which is unrivalled among low-floor regular-service buses. The first generation of the Citaro covered 28 different variants, ranging from the compact Citaro K measuring 10.5 m in length to the four-axle, 19.54 m long CapaCity articulated large-capacity bus which is also based on the Citaro modular system.

The new-generation Citaro with Euro VI engine technology already comprises 19 model variants. In addition to the Citaro Solo, the artic and the Citaro LE, the range also includes the short variant, the Citaro K, and RHD Citaro models of the Citaro Solo and Citaro K. With this diverse spectrum, the Citaro covers virtually the entire range of transportation requirements of bus companies providing regular urban and rural public transport services.

Hamburger Hochbahn AG

With its order in 2013, Hamburger Hochbahn AG has once again placed its trust in the Citaro as a highly capable and comfortable urban regular-service bus. With its fleet of some 900 buses for the most part Mercedes-Benz Citaros - and an annual passenger volume in excess of 230 million, economy, reliability and environmental compatibility are crucial to the Hochbahn group.

With a workforce of over 4500 and a passenger volume of some 1.2 million on weekdays, Hochbahn AG is not only the largest partner in Hamburg's HVV transport association but also the second-largest transport company in Germany. Hochbahn provides high-quality transport services in Hamburg on four underground railway lines and 100 bus lines. As the orchestrator of a multimodal transport offering, Hochbahn aims to combine bus and rail with complementary mobility services under the "switchh" brand in future, thereby establishing inner-city mobility without the use of private cars as the new standard.

Credits: Daimler AG

Copyright © 2013, Mercedes-Benz-Blog. All rights reserved.

Detail: Mercedes-Benz Citaro for Hamburger Hochbahn: The Citaro has been in service in Hamburg for over 15 years

0 SWEG takes its first Euro VI buses into service

Modern, environment-friendly regular-service buses operate throughout the entire network of routes served by the SWEG passenger transport company. Also in town centres, the bus plays a special role. It stands for sustainable thinking, economy, safety and comfort. The Citaro with its Euro VI-compliant engine is the embodiment of a modern and, above all, environmentally aware bus service. This is a bus that is wholeheartedly accepted by the population while at the same time constituting the backbone of the local public passenger transport system. In the presence of Baden-Württemberg’s transport minister, Winfried Hermann, and the chief executive of Ortenau administrative district, Frank Scherer, Tammo Voigt, Head of Public Transport Fleet Sales at Mercedes-Benz Buses & Coaches, officially handed over four Mercedes-Benz Citaro Euro VI buses on 12 June to Johannes Müller, spokesman for the board of SWEG. This procurement delivers yet further proof of the company’s commitment to sustainability. For it was only in September of last year that SWEG took two Citaro G BlueTec Hybrid buses into service, since when the vehicles have been in daily operation on bus routes in the town of Offenburg.

“Three Lions in Motion” design concept

One of the four Citaros is a design concept based on the visual appearance of some rail vehicles that will be in future service in Baden-Württemberg. True to the slogan “SWEG with Three Lions in Motion”, the striking design of the bus proudly sports the regional colours of Baden-Württemberg both inside and outside: signal yellow and white. Set off with halftone “Staufer lions” at the sides, the exterior of the Citaro design concept reflects the heraldic devices of the regional coat of arms. The interior, too, boasts the colours and devices of the state of Baden-Württemberg. The dark fabrics of the passenger seats are resplendent with the lion emblem, sometimes with a yellow outline, sometimes with a light-grey one. The signal-yellow grab rails form a contrast to the otherwise dark-toned interior.

The Mercedes-Benz Citaro Euro VI

The two-door rigid bus with horizontal engine combines the Euro VI exhaust emissions standard with a multiplicity of unique features.

This Citaro is powered by the new OM 936h rear-mounted six-cylinder in-line engine with 7.7 litre displacement, a power rating of 220 kW (299 hp) and a maximum torque of 1200 Nm. The engine already complies with the Euro VI exhaust emissions standard. Power is transferred by the ZF Ecolife six-speed automatic transmission. The abundant torque from the engine is an ideal match for the standard rear axle ratio of i = 5.77, which is almost 10% longer-legged than in the Citaro with the previous Euro V engine. This reduces the engine speed and therefore also the fuel consumption, CO2 emissions and driving noise.

Fuel economy

The new Citaro’s outstanding fuel economy is assured, among other things, by a recuperation module (24 volts), which allows the regular-service bus to save fuel in that the free electricity generated on overrun is stored and used to operate the vehicle’s electrical accessories. This reduces the load on the drivetrain and lowers fuel consumption.

The energy storage function is performed by “supercaps”, double-layer capacitors, with a power rating of 6 kW and a capacity of 1 Ah. This process alone reduces the Citaro’s fuel consumption and CO2 emissions by more than 2%.

In the Record Run Buses 2012, the Euro VI engine impressively demonstrated its clear superiority in terms of fuel economy over the already highly fuel-efficient Euro V engine. With a fuel saving of 8.5% in a head-to-head with the comparable predecessor model, the Citaro with Euro VI engine exceeded even the promises of the Mercedes-Benz engineers.

SWEG – at the service of the South West

Modern and regional – that, in a nutshell, is how SWEG sees itself. The passenger transport company’s bus and rail services extend from Weil am Rhein and Lörrach in the south of Baden-Württemberg to the area around Bad Mergentheim in the north-east of the state. The modern fleet comprises some 300 of the company’s own buses and 50 leased units. Every year, approximately 30 vehicles are replaced, involving a capital expenditure of around seven million euros. The majority of vehicles comply with the exacting EEV exhaust emissions standard (Enhanced Environmentally Friendly Vehicle).

SWEG carried 61.3 million bus and rail passengers in 2012 together with its ten public transport companies and five subsidiaries. With a staff of 780, the company is an important employer in the region. Its traditionally good image helps SWEG to win broad acceptance among the population.

Credits: Daimler AG

Copyright © 2013, Mercedes-Benz-Blog. All rights reserved.

Detail: SWEG takes its first Euro VI buses into service

0 Regular-service operation with Mercedes-Benz fuel-cell buses

A secured hydrogen infrastructure is a prerequisite for the successful launch of environment- and resource-friendly fuel-cell technology in mobile use. The commissioning of the hydrogen filling station by the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) on its Campus North site coincides with the start of operations for the shuttle service planned for students and employees, in the form of two Mercedes-Benz Citaro FuelCELL Hybrid fuel-cell buses. Ulrich Piotrowski, Head of Sales Mercedes-Benz Buses Region West, was present at the inauguration of the filling station on 11 June and officially sent the shuttle vehicles into regular-service operation.

The KIT shuttle is a dedicated bus route for the students and employees at the KIT Campus South, the former University of Karlsruhe (TH) in the city of Karlsruhe, and the KIT Campus North, the former research centre in Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen. The shuttle service on the 15-kilometre route links the Campus North, Campus South and Campus East stops at 30-minute intervals without any intermediate stops – mobility and innovation.

The FuelCELL concept in the Citaro

Thanks to the improved fuel-cell components – the fuel-cell stacks are identical to those in the Mercedes-Benz B-Class FCELL with a fuel-cell drive system – and hybridisation with lithium-ion batteries (27 kW/h) the Citaro FuelCELL Hybrid saves 50 percent more hydrogen than the predecessor generation, from which it benefits for the planned shuttle service. It has been possible to reduce the number of tanks compared to the earlier tried-and-tested fuel-cell buses from nine to seven reservoirs for a total of 35 kg of hydrogen. And where the FuelCELL Hybrid drive system is concerned, too, the engineers have focused on sustainability: As a power supplier the fuel cell is intelligently linked with several components. Both the battery and electric wheel hub drive and also the integral braking energy recuperation system are networked with one another. The fuel-cell bus has a range of over 300 kilometres and the filling time at the new filling station is a mere eight to ten minutes. This means that the Citaro FuelCELL Hybrid can be used in just as uncomplicated a manner and as flexibly as contemporary diesel vehicles. In addition to this the drive system with the fuel cells is virtually maintenance-free and highly durable.

The award-winning Citaro FuelCELL Hybrid

With these wide-ranging technical advancements purely electric buses with fuel cells as their energy generators are coming a significant step closer to production maturity. The Mercedes-Benz Citaro FuelCELL Hybrid facilitates permanent emission-free regular service between the campus sites and is thus an important element in future mobility. The use of synergies and the Daimler technology transfer from the passenger car to the bus render the fuel cell in the bus fit for the future.

It was this reasoning which last year won the Citaro FuelCELL Hybrid the ecology prize for local public transport in the fuel-cell bus category, the EBUS Award. The Forum for Transport and Logistics e. V. awarded the prize under the patronage of Dr Peter Ramsauer, the Federal Minister of Transport, Building and Urban Development.

Credits: Daimler AG

Copyright © 2013, Mercedes-Benz-Blog. All rights reserved.

Detail: Regular-service operation with Mercedes-Benz fuel-cell buses

0 Daimler Buses receives order from Austria

ÖBB Postbus GmbH is focusing on vehicles from Mercedes-Benz and Setra as it modernizes its bus fleet. After a Europe-wide advertising Daimler Buses and the ÖBB Postbus GmbH entered into a frame agreement which provides the delivery of vehicles between 2013 and 2017. The orders are open, the exact distribution on the individual models as well but it might be around a volume of about 400 Buses.

ÖBB Postbus operates local public transportation systems throughout Austria and also receives operating contracts from almost all of the transportation networks in the country. “Daimler Buses is a reliable partner of ÖBB Postbus. We’re delighted that the company places such trust in our safe, clean, and reliable high-quality vehicles,” says Till Oberwörder, Managing Director of Sales, Marketing & After-Sales Daimler Buses.
Models supplied are the Mercedes-Benz Intouro, Integro, and Citaro buses as well as the Setra Multi Class 400. All high floor vehicles have a wheelchair elevator in the double broad middle way to enter. All vehicles of Mercedes-Benz and Setra are also equipped with air conditioners for the passenger space and for the driver.

The Mercedes-Benz and Setra buses offer not only outstanding comfort and safety but also great efficiency and excellent sustainability. With a lower engine speed and optimized sound insulation, Mercedes-Benz Citaro, which was named `European Bus of the Year 2013`, won the title against strong hybrid competition. At the Record Run Buses 2012 Mercedes-Benz and Setra showed under a supervision of the examination organization DEKRA that their Euro VI-compliant vehicles consume around 8% less fuel than their Euro V-compliant predecessors.

Credits: Daimler AG

Copyright © 2013, Mercedes-Benz-Blog. All rights reserved.

Detail: Daimler Buses receives order from Austria

0 Buses are gaining momentum: The Citaro Euro VI buses for the City of Trier

Trier’s public utility company has put three new Citaro Euro VI buses into service. The urban buses equipped with Euro VI exhaust treatment technology significantly improve urban environmental quality thanks to emissions that are 80 percent lower than those of their predecessors. At the same time, the fuel expenses of the transport operator are lower because the new buses use more than 8 percent less diesel fuel. This was substantiated in the "Record Run Buses" economy run conducted in autumn 2012 under the impartial supervision of Dekra.

Daimler Buses has delivered some 350 buses equipped with Euro VI exhaust treatment technology to date. By the end of 2013 more than 1700 Daimler Buses of the Mercedes-Benz and Setra brands equipped with environmentally friendly Euro VI exhaust treatment technology are expected to be on the road.

Milestone in bus development, economic efficiency was top development priority

To comply with the Euro VI emission standards, the buses are equipped with complex exhaust treatment technology. They combine the customary Mercedes-Benz SCR technology of AdBlue injection and oxidation catalyst with exhaust gas recirculation and a closed particulate filter. The completely new engine generation and the complex exhaust treatment technology have reduced emissions to the very margin of detectability and thus represent another step in the advancement of diesel technology.

Credits: Daimler AG

Copyright © 2013, Mercedes-Benz-Blog. All rights reserved.

Detail: Buses are gaining momentum: The Citaro Euro VI buses for the City of Trier

0 First Citaros delivered in Budapest

The first 56 Citaros were delivered in Budapest on 30 April 2013, right on schedule. Till Oberwörder, Head of Marketing, Sales & Aftersales Daimler Buses, handed over the vehicles in the presence of the Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, the Mayor of Budapest István Tarlós, the General Director of the Budapest Transport Centre, Dávid Vitézy, and Messrs Mátyás Dósa and Péter Szepesi, operators of the private bus company VT Transman GmbH.

These Citaros are the first vehicles to be delivered from the major contract signed with the Budapest City Authorities last November for the acquisition of a total of 159 Mercedes-Benz Citaros. With the second-generation Citaro, the city has opted for one of the most advanced urban bus concepts available on the market today. In addition, the Citaro is the most successful urban bus of all time. The over 33,000 units sold in just 14 production years express customers’ trust most tellingly.

The complete order consists of over 80 articulated units and 79 solo vehicles of the new Citaro generation. Thanks to Mercedes-Benz BlueTec diesel technology, both the articulated and the solo units comply with the environmentally-friendly EEV exhaust gas standard. Thanks to the buses’ low-floor design, elderly and persons with restricted mobility can easily get in and out of the vehicles or use the wheelchair ramp. Camera monitoring of the passenger compartment and the vehicle surroundings provide that extra quantum of safety to prevent vandalism damage to the vehicle as well as violent assaults on driver or passengers.

As from July the entire Mercedes-Benz urban bus fleet will provide comfortable and environment-friendly public transport in the metropolis on the Danube. Daimler Buses was able to implement a relatively short time of production of the entire slot, by using two production locations – a success of the EvoBus integrated production network. The new Citaro was manufactured in both the Mannheim bus production facilities and the factory in Neu-Ulm.

Daimler Buses is the worldwide leading manufacturer of buses and chassis for vehicles with a permissible gross vehicle weight greater than 8 tons. In 2012 Daimler Buses sold approximately 32,000 buses and coaches as well as vehicle chassis. The product spectrum ranges from urban buses to inter-city buses and touring coaches and from minibuses to double-decker buses and coaches, with the most diverse engines and equipment/appointment variants. European bus and coach business is under the responsibility of EvoBus GmbH, a 100-percent subsidiary of Daimler AG.

Credits: Daimler AG

Copyright © 2013, Mercedes-Benz-Blog. All rights reserved.

Detail: First Citaros delivered in Budapest