November 27, 2018, 11:36 AM 
The Land Transport Authority (LTA) will be rolling out 50 diesel-hybrid buses (DHB) come December 2018.
These DHBs were procured from Volvo East Asia (Pte Ltd) at a total cost of almost S$30 million, making each DHB worth about S$600,000.
The DHB model is the Volvo B5LH.
The DHBs are propelled by both diesel engine and electric motor, which is in turn powered by diesel fuel and batteries respectively.
The batteries will automatically be charged by the diesel engine. When brakes are applied, the vehicle’s momentum is converted into electricity.
This means commuters will have a smoother and quieter ride.
LTA says that deployment of the 50 DHBs will help them "better understand the operational challenges that come with the wider deployment of such buses under our tropical climate and traffic conditions".
Additionally, it can help technicians and engineers better understand the challenges in maintaining DHBs.
Singapore's tropical climate presents a set of challenges for hybrid (or electric) buses because more electricity is needed to power the air-conditioning in buses.
Not the first time hybrid buses ply our roads
This isn't the first time hybrid buses have been tested on Singapore's roads.
According to Land Transport Guru, three China-made DHBs were deployed between 2010 and 2012.
SMRT Buses trialled one Zhongtong LCK6121GHEV bus in 2011, while SBS Transit trialled two Sunlong SLK6121UF14H buses from 2010 to 2012.
Both trials were unsuccessful and the buses were sold to private operators.
SMRT Zhongtong LCK6121GHEV (SMB137A) – Service 945. Via Land Transport Guru.
In 2015, then-Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew said in Parliament that the fuel savings from the Chinese DHB trials were not enough to justify the higher bus cost:
"The two trials that were conducted from 2010 to 2012 indicated an approximate 25 percent improvement in fuel efficiency, with less conclusive results for emissions. The fuel savings were, however, insufficient to offset the 140 percent higher cost compared to normal buses."
At the same time in 2015, Volvo initiated a two-year DHB trial with SBS Transit in order to test Volvo's DHBs in Singapore's climate.
This trial was not funded by the government.
SBS Transit Volvo B5RLE Hybrid (SBS8002T) – Service 268. Via Land Transport Guru.
The result of the Volvo trial is unknown, but evidently it was good enough for LTA to announce the procurement of 50 Volvo DHBs in October 2017.
New Passenger Information Display Systems
The 50 DHBs will also sport new Passenger Information Displays System (PIDS). These are both exterior and on-board displays.
The exterior display will show the following information:
- The bus service number
- The bus destination
- The next three MRT or LRT stations that the bus connects to
The on-board display will show:
- The next four bus stops
- MRT and LRT transfer information
- Time
- Indication if the bus has arrived at the bus stop
The buses will also have audio announcements of the next bus stop.
On-board PIDS. Via LTA.
Exterior PIDS. Via LTA.
Exterior PIDS. Image courtesy of LTA.
Mothership understands that these new displays were implemented based on feedback collected from commuters.
Moving forward, all new buses will sport this new PIDS.
For an in-depth read on hybrid buses in Singapore, check out this article by Land Transport Guru.
Top photo courtesy of LTA
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