2015-04-07 Item 2 - Attachment 1 - Pre feasibility Study of Electric Bus Routes

Figure 13 Location for Batteries in an Electric Bus




Source: Battery packs of electric vehicle bus. (Photo: Guangzhou Daily/Chen www.lifeofguangzhou.com)

Range of Electric Buses
The ranges of electric buses can vary depending on the battery capacity, number of
batteries, the terrain of the bus route, the size of the bus, opportunities for charging en-route
and battery technology used to deploy the bus. Generally, most electric buses on urban
routes have a range of between 100 km and 200 km. The bus can be charged overnight to
100% capacity via depot based slow chargers (traditionally vary from 3-60 kW) and/or be
charged en-route or at the terminus of a route by fast chargers (ranging between 60-400kw)

Electric Bus Charging Infrastructure

Charging of the electric bus can be continuous during operation, at dedicated stations or
along the bus route. As indicated in Section 3.4, to accommodate the bus route proposed for
Noosa will require a range of approximately 280km per day (including “dead” running time)
which will require a fast charge during the day to make sure that the bus can complete the
required route. In general, a fast charge provides approximately 1 km of extra range per 1
minute of charge (rule of thumb). This means that during the day, a quick charge may be
required for a few hours in order to accommodate the suggested route (the exact time will
depend on the charger type and the battery capacity). Some buses can be charged via either
an overhead quick charger or an inductive underbody charger using a super charger
(between 200-400kW). This allows the bus to top up its charge in just a few minutes at each
charging point. It should be noted that the capital outlay for such systems is in the order of
$200,000-$300,000 and usually required a network of buses in order to support a business
case.




                                    GHD | Feasibility Study of Electric Bus Routes in Noosa - Planning Report | 21