Inter-city travel is going to get better, sooner than most people think. The government’s increased focus on infrastructure development and decent
progress on the Golden Quadrilateral roadways project has had a number of commercial vehicle manufacturers consciously develop improved
transportation solutions.
Ashok Leyland’s hi-tech and stylish iBus first made news at the Auto Expo in January. Now the company has started showcasing the product and last
fortnight it rolled out the vehicle at the Anna University in Chennai to gauge public opinion.
The smart-looking people-mover is the result of considerable feedback from bus travellers in India and the handiwork of a young 25-member team of
young engineers from a Cross Functional Team who helped design and develop the innovative concept.
Developed in a scant 10 months, the semi-low floor bus has an electronically-controlled air suspension, which can also be lowered for easier entry
and exit of passengers. The rear-engined bus has two doors, with the rear at 1.5 metres being the widest in the country. The air-conditioned bus
has 42 seats and can accommodate 30 standees, if the need arises to transport more people.
Innovation, Intelligence, Indian
The iBus (the ‘i’ meaning innovation, intelligence and Indian) stands out from the crowd thanks to a host of high-technology features which help
the company bill it as the Indian shuttle for tomorrow’s metros.
According to B Venkat Subramaniam, special director (marketing), Ashok Leyland, the iBus is an innovative combination of ‘executive class’ and
‘economy class’ to help optimise capacity utilisation by allowing for differential fare structures. The executive class has an airline-like
ambience with wide LCD screens, reading lights, audio speakers and, for the first time, internet on the move.
In essence, it offers climate-controlled comfort and safety at an affordable cost. The driver-friendly iBus comes with an ergonomically-designed
electronics-enabled ‘workplace’, complete with digital display of all required information, rear camera video display, an integrated control stack
and microphone.
The iBus concept is designed to specifically meet Indian operating conditions — economics, climate and the increasing concern for pedestrian
safety. The product tries to meet the transportation needs of people revealed in the feedback received from a survey conducted by Ashok Leyland in
several cities in the country.
“We found that people are willing to switch from cars and two-wheelers to public transport if the options provided are efficient and comfortable.
We also found that more people are using the bus as a means for longer inter-city travel,” said Subramaniam.
With the induction of electronics in a variety of systems like engine management and air suspension to passenger infotainment and fleet
management, the iBus comes with many ‘intelligent’ features that deliver new levels of safety, comfort and operating economics like the ABS
(Anti-lock Braking System) and collision warning systems.
The iBus comes with electronically controlled air suspension on both axles, disc brakes on the front axle, 4S/4M ABS, and electro-pneumatic doors.
An additional feature is the Alert telematics on-board unit that facilitates vehicle tracking and real-time arrival information at bus stops. This
device, which works on GPS and GPRS, was launched at the Expo following a year of field trails and is packaged with real-time Web-based reporting
and fleet management functionality.
The iBus is powered by an eCORE, a 152 kW, BS III-compliant, low noise, common-rail engine, a first in the commercial vehicle industry. Higher
torque levels also offer smoother pickup and faster acceleration. There’s also the Automated Manual Transmission (AMT), which is ideal for the
start-stop nature of intra-city transportation in India and will help alleviate the burden of the driver. And the energy-absorbing body structure
is designed to meet European rollover safety standards.
Subramaniam said the iBus is slated to go into production within the next six months and estimates that it should cost around Rs 60 lakh.
Meanwhile, Ashok Leyland has already entered into talks with the Metropolitan Transport Corporation in Chennai for supply of the iBus. “We have
been supplying the Corporation most of its fleet, including the semi-low floor, semi-luxury fleet and the vestibules. We will now be looking at
marketing this product too, as soon as we get into production,” said Subramaniam.