Japanese-carmaker Nissan’s electric vehicle ‘Leaf’s’ technology will be used to develop a electric bus in a project for Japan that is being led by Kumamoto University.

The electric bus project testing is set to begin from February in Japan, with the goal of making zero-emission public transit more widespread and affordable. The project led by Kumamoto University will bring together talent and expertise from the automotive industry, government and academia. It is part of the university’s ongoing involvement with the Japanese Ministry of Environment’s project that aims to reduce or eliminate CO2 and other emissions from larger vehicles such as buses and trucks.

Nissan says that a major obstacle in creating large electric vehicles has been the high cost of development and parts, including batteries and electric motors. By using technology already conceived and perfected by the company, the cost of manufacturing electric buses can be greatly reduced.

The bus, named 'Yoka ECO Bus,' will feature three batteries, three electric motors and an inverter from the Nissan LEAF. Nissan will also develop a dedicated gearbox for the bus and offer technical support. The company hopes the technology can help the project achieve its goal of creating environmentally friendly buses for public transportation systems in Japan.

“We hope to improve Japan’s environment by standardising the manufacturing of EV buses with help from the know-how of automakers,” said Toshiro Matsuda, an associate professor at Kumamoto University and the project’s leader. “Our goal is to develop EV buses that are well-balanced in terms of being friendly to the environment and having low development costs.”