Today, Van Hool presented the first hydrogen-powered trambus to Mayor François Bayrou of the French city of Pau, who came to Koningshooikt for a status meeting on the delivery, scheduled for September 2019, of the 8 vehicles ordered. The visit was hosted by mr Jan Van Hool, CTO at Van Hool.
These unique vehicles are the first hydrogen-powered trambuses developed, designed and built by Van Hool. The company integrates in this vehicle its previous experience in the field of trambuses (since 2011) on the one hand and hydrogen-powered vehicles (since 2005) on the other in a new revolutionary vehicle that emits no harmful substances (only water vapor).
A trambus combines the best of both worlds: the flexibility of a bus with the comfort and punctuality of a tram.
A zero-emission drive form was then added to this: a fuel cell in which hydrogen (H2) and oxygen (O2) are converted in real time into electricity with water vapor as the only emission by means of a reverse electrolysis.
The brand new vehicle is a 18.62 meter articulated tram bus with a capacity of 125 passengers and an autonomy of 300 kilometers.
