Cape Town just took a massive step towards cleaner public transport. Golden Arrow Bus Services (GABS) officially launched its electric bus project at the Arrowgate Depot this week, unveiling South Africa’s largest electric bus fleet and charging facility.
The rollout includes 68 electric buses already on the road, with 40 more arriving soon and a target of 120 by December, as detailed by Ash Muller, who attended the launch.
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Each BYD B12 bus seats 65 passengers, runs on lithium-iron-phosphate batteries and can travel up to 240km on a single charge.
At the new depot, charging infrastructure is powered by solar during the day and the grid at night. It has capacity for 30 chargers now and 50 by year-end.
According to GABS, operating costs are dramatically lower too - R2–R3/km for electric versus R12/km for diesel.
Michael Leighton, CTO of Smart EV (the STS Tech Group division behind the charging tech), detailed that the depot can manage its energy load to avoid costly peak-hour charging.
The shift has seen GABS cut its diesel use from 39,000 to 32,000 litres daily. With Cape Town commuters boarding these buses daily, the city is inching closer to a greener, smarter mobility future.
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