Volvo has launched the world’s largest bus – a behemoth of a transporter that can carry up to 300 passengers at one time.
The Gran Arctic 300 is a biarticulated bus, meaning it has two bendy parts connecting the three passenger-carrying sections.
The 30 metre long bus has been developed in Brazil specifically for use on Rio de Janeiro’s dedicated bus lanes. Each biarticulated bus replaces three of the standard bus models and carries up to 30 more passengers than previous biarticulated buses.
“This vehicle will provide more efficient transportation systems, offering a higher quality for the passengers and improved cost efficiency for the transport operators,” said Fabiano Todeschini, head of Volvo Bus Latin America.
The bendy Brazil bus might be one of the largest mass transporters of its kind, but it’s not the most futuristic form of public transport we’ve seen this year. The Transit Elevated Bus – a huge bus that carries passengers over the traffic below – has been tested for the first time in China.
The electric-powered bus was unveiled in Qinhuangdao, Hebei province in August this year. The 22 metre long, 7.8 metre wide and 4.8 metre high bus trundled along a 300 metre stretch of road at an excruciatingly slow speed for its inaugural test run, but the finished version should hit speeds of 40 mph.
The spacious interior of each bus looks more like an luxury airport departure lounge than a public bus and can squeeze in 300 passengers at full capacity. Original designs for the TEB showed multiple carriages linked together to carry up to 1,200 passengers.
Passengers will board the sixteen-wheeled bus via elevated platforms on the roadside, although commuters in a hurry are still better off taking the subway as no high-speed tests of the bus have taken place yet.
“Its construction can be finished in one year,” said Bai Chiming, the engineer in charge of the TEB project when the bus was unveiled in May.
London had its own infamous flirtation with ‘bendy buses’ after mayor Ken Livingstone introduced the vehicles to the capital’s roads back in 2001. After ten years of service the last articulated bus trundled back to its depot in December 2011 as its kind were replaced with new Routemaster double-deckers.
