The first to service the region
10.03.11
Estonia launches CNG buses in major city
On March 3, public transport operator Sebe AS introduced five new Scania buses driven by compressed methane that will ply across Tartu’s streets. The fleet can also run on biogas, which the city’s public water utility is preparing to produce, aiming to decrease dependence on world gas prices.
As reported by local media ERRNews, the gas cylinders are located on the roof of the vehicle and, according to the Environmental Technology Verification (EVT), the engine is quieter than diesel-powered and only emits carbon dioxide and water vapour.
“This makes the new buses much more environmentally friendly, as the CO₂ emission is lower and there are almost no solid particles,” said Kuldar Väärsi, chairman of Sebe. Furthermore, Jaanus Tamm from the Tartu Finance Department remarked that this natural gas bus fleet was also introduced “as a political decision” due to the lower costs of the gaseous fuel.
It is worth mentioning that the new buses, manufactured at Scania’s plant in Poland, will refuel at a recently constructed filling station developed by Eesti (Estonia) Gas, and that Sebe authorities plan to replace the entire diesel fleet.