ZF’s e-axle goes into buses in London and USA

ZF has announced that its AxTrax AVE electric portal axle are powering 31 London double-decker buses, which are set to be equipped with this technology and be powered solely by electricity. The electric buses will be built by domestic CV major Ashok Leyland’s UK-based subsidiary Optare, which ZF says will comply with one of the strictest emissions regulations worldwide.

The second success is marked by a new chapter in the partnership between ZF and New Flyer of America, a leading North American city bus manufacturer. The transport associations of several major US cities has ordered 100 buses from the Xcelsior Charge model series equipped with ZF’s AxTrax AVE electric portal axle. 

Fredrik Staedtler, head of the Commercial Vehicle Technology Division at ZF, said: "ZF supplies purely electric drive systems especially which meet the strictest emissions regulations for urban metropolises. The AxTrax AVE drive axle is an ideal solution for manufacturers and municipalities to shape their local inner-city traffic with zero emissions, while at the same time providing an attractive mobility offer. I am delighted that London and other metropolises in the US have now also chosen to work with ZF as a partner."

Public transport to be hundred times cleaner
Like most major cities, Great Britain’s capital, London, suffers from poor air quality. The public transport systems can play a key role in fighting air pollution, which is why Transport for London (TfL), London’s public transport authority, is fully focused on e-mobility. The Metrodecker EV, flagship of Optare's bus portfolio, highlights this focus. ZF says 31 new model buses will be equipped with the AxTrax AVE – ZF’s powerful and quiet drive with zero local emissions. The potential remains huge as London plans all buses in the city centre to be electrically powered by 2037. 

ZF and the vehicle manufacturer New Flyer of America, Inc. have cooperated for over 20 years to build powerful and efficient buses. A new order in the US demonstrates just how much both companies have benefited from this collaboration in the age of electric-mobility. A total of 100 buses from the Xcelsior Charge model series will be delivered to public transport companies in several U.S. cities by 2020. These include the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, King County Metro Transit in Seattle, Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority in Boston and Metro Transit in Minneapolis.

The AxTrax AVE was first introduced in 2012 and has been successfully deployed around the world ever since. The electric drive axle can be combined with hybrid as well as fuel cell configurations or be powered by a battery. Due to the flat design, OEMs have a great deal of freedom when it comes to designing the interior. As a system supplier, ZF says it can also deliver the appropriate hardware and software to optimally align performance, efficiency and service life of the drive.

Also read: Ashok Leyland’s Optare to supply 31 e-double-decker buses to London Transport