Madrid launches 100% electric buses

The Madrid City Council government of Manuela Carmena wants to reduce pollution by replacing old buses with more than 70 zero emission buses. The first of these EMT 100% electric buses was recently put into service. This new fleet of five buses does not emit any polluting gases, and they run silently. The buses are re-charged by an innovative induction system that does not need cables or plug-ins. The batteries are charged by magnetic coils that are located in the lower part of the bus and in the road. A magnetic field is generated between the coils which produces a transmission of energy that recharges the vehicles.

The buses begin their journey with the batteries fully charged, and when they return to the first stop they merely park over the charging area for eight minutes to become fully recharged. This allows them to incorporate smaller batteries. Regarding safety, the passenger compartment of the bus is insulated to avoid radiation, while the coil on the roadway is covered by a layer of concrete, so as not to affect pedestrians. Madrid is the first city in Spain to use this system, and they plan to expand the fleet of electric buses to more than 70 by 2019.