With the new electric buses, BSVG is now also saying goodbye to inductive recharging. Although the previous vehicles with this operating mode will remain in use, the four new vehicles are designed exclusively for overnight recharging at the depot using cables and CCS combo plugs. This shows one thing very clearly: the batteries installed in the buses have become much more powerful. You no longer have to recharge “every so often”.

The four new MAN buses are the first of a total of 50 electric buses that BSVG has ordered for delivery by the end of 2025. MAN will supply 32 of these vehicles, with the remaining 18 coming from Mercedes. The 32 MANs will all be depot chargers, while the 18 Mercedes (eCitaro) will also be able to be recharged on the route via pantograph. BSVG boss Jörg Reincke: “The mix of depot and occasional chargers allows us to utilise the advantages of both systems in our route network. And we are also gaining important experience for the further electrification of our bus fleet.”

2.69 million has been invested in the four new MAN Lion’s City E buses. Grants were provided by the Federal Ministry of Transport and the Lower Saxony LNVG (Landes-Nahverkehrs-Gesellschaft). The Federal Ministry of Transport is also subsidising the construction of the necessary charging infrastructure. BSVG boss Reincke: “We are extremely grateful for the funding from the federal government and the state of Lower Saxony.”

From Monday, 8 January, the new MAN electric buses will be used on routes 411, 418, the two opposite-running ring routes 419 and 429 and the L routes 422 and 426.