TRANSPORTATION TUESDAY: Tindo, the Solar-powered Bus!
Posted By Jorge Chapa On December 18, 2007 @ 2:15 pm In Green Transportation,TransportationTuesday | 16 Comments
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Solar-powered mass transportation? It’s no longer a dream! Tindo [5], a solar-powered electric bus, was introduced just last week in the city of Adelaide in Australia. The best part? It’s free to ride the supercute, supersolar Tindo.
Designed and manufactured by New Zealand-based Designline International [6], Tindo is charged by a photovoltaic system installed at the Adelaide Central Bus Station. It’s the largest grid-connected solar photovoltaic system in South Australia and charges the bus’s 11 batteries, which power the fully electric zero-emission engine. The bus has a range of 200 km between charges, more than enough to accomodate services within the city. It carries up to 42 passengers, a number that includes 25 seated passengers, 2 seats for disabled passengers, and 15 standing persons. And as for the name? Tindo is the Kaurna Aboriginal word for “sun.” Quite appropriate, we think.
By having a fully solar-powered bus, Adelaide has created something that other cities should follow. Here’s hoping that Tindo does not remain a one-off model, but becomes the future of mass transportation. And did we mention that it was free to ride?
“Tindo is at the cutting edge of sustainable solar energy technology – using the power of the sun to drive a commuter transport vehicle which operates with zero tailpipe emissions, and is also fully carbon neutral.” said Lord Mayor Michael Harbison.
+ Tindo Solar Bus @ Adelaide City Council [5]
Via Autobloggreen [7]
Article printed from Inhabitat – Sustainable Design Innovation, Eco Architecture, Green Building: http://inhabitat.com
URL to article: http://inhabitat.com/transportation-tuesday-tindo-the-solar-powered-bus-arrives/
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[4] Image: http://www.inhabitat.com/2007/12/18/transportation-tuesday-tindo-the-solar-powered-bus-arrives/
[5] Tindo: http://www.adelaidecitycouncil.com/scripts/nc.dll?ADCC:STANDARD::pc=PC_151048#
[6] Designline International: http://www.designlineinternational.com
[7] Autobloggreen: http://www.autobloggreen.com/2007/12/13/tindo-solar-powered-bus-makes-its-debut-in-adelaide/
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