Diesel tailpipe emissions are a significant source of toxic air pollution. In African cities, diesel buses account for about 40% of annual passenger trips. African cities need a sustainable mobility revolution to meet growing mobility needs in Africa and reduce carbon emissions.
Kenya produces more than 70% of its electricity from renewable energy sources such as hydro, geothermal, solar, and wind. Replacing diesel buses in this region with electric buses would significantly reduce diesel consumption and carbon emissions.
The Kenya-based e-mobility start-up that provides public transport buses, BasiGo, has unveiled an electric bus E9 Kubwa for Kenya’s Public Service Vehicle (PSV) sector. It is the successor to BasiGo’s K6 electric bus, launched last year. The E9 Kubwa electric bus is a 36-seater with a standing capacity of an additional 18 passengers.
The electric bus is powered by a 210-kWh lithium iron phosphate battery combined with a 130kW motor that provides the bus a maximum speed of 80 km/h (50 mph), providing the E9 Kubwa with a maximum range of 250 km (155 miles) on a single charge.
The E9 Kubwa bus battery can be charged in 2-4 hours with a combined charging system-2 (CCS2) DC charger. The rechargeable battery can be charged for free in 2 hours with the help of BasiGO charging depots that can charge the bus with up to 120 kW charging power. The battery of this bus comes with an 8-year / 600,000 km warranty provided by Chinese battery manufacturer Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd (CATL).
The electric bus is 9 meters long, 2.5 meters wide, and 3.19 meters high. The weight of the bus is 9900 kg, and the gross vehicle weight is 14000 kg.
The E9 Kubwa features a high back, leather seats, handrails for standing passengers, and a shock-absorbing seat for the driver to reduce driver fatigue. The integrated interior CCTV cameras and rearview cameras provide the driver with a better view of everything happening inside the bus. Likewise, an innovative digital dashboard helps the driver monitor battery charge and driving performance and all systems.
The bus also features high-speed Wi-Fi, a 19-inch LCD TV screen, USB charging, and CCTV cameras for enhanced security.
Bus operators can always track the location and status of their buses with the help of GPS tracking and telematics. BasiGo also provides operators with in-depth data on their daily bus operations through BasiGo’s PAYD software portal.
BasiGo’s pay-as-you-drive scheme is also available to purchase this electric bus. This enables the owner to pay for their electric bus based on the kilometers their bus drives daily. With the help of this scheme, it will be convenient to own an electric bus for anyone without any financial barriers.
Pay-As-You-Drive comes with two options- Purchase option and Lease option.
A purchase option in which the owner can purchase the bus without the expensive battery. The owner can lease the battery from BasiGo through a Pay-As-You-Drive battery lease that includes free charging and maintenance.
In the lease option, the operator can lease the entire bus with just a small up-front deposit and a Pay-As-You-Drive lease fee for the whole bus.
You can reserve BasiGo E9 Kubwa electric bus from their official website. Reservations require a deposit of Ksh 10,000 ($70) per bus and will be refunded upon cancellation.
