Buses account for over half of all public transport ridership in Europe and are an essential component for sustainable urban mobility. The introduction of clean buses is necessary in order to reach the air quality targets of the European Union (EU), both in the short term (up to 2025) and the long term (up to 2050). In the short term, diesel, CNG and hybrid buses are expected to have the greatest market share; however, in the long term, zero-emission buses including fully electric and hydrogen fuel cell buses have maximum growth potential.

The public transport authorities of many important cities in Europe have announced plans to procure only ‘green’ buses. The governments are funding research and procurement of clean buses to achieve greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction goals. Industry and research groups are developing new technologies based on open standards and interoperability but need assistance for market development. The suppliers are providing demonstration buses for operators to test real world performance and infrastructure requirements. 

The Clean Bus Deployment Initiative, launched in July 2017, aims to increase the share of alternatively-fuelled buses in the bus fleet from 10-12 per cent in 2016 to 30 per cent in 2025. EU’s plan to deploy at least 2,000 zero-emission buses by the end of 2019, with growing rates thereafter, represents an investment opportunity of over EUR 1 billion. The City of London has announced ambitious plans to upgrade the existing fleet of 5,000 buses and introduce around 3,200 buses by 2020.

In light of these developments, Global Mass Transit is organising the Conference on Clean Buses in Europe at the InterContinental Amstel in Amsterdam on April 18-19, 2018. 

Mission

The conference will explore major trends and developments affecting the clean bus industry and outlook for the future. It will cover adaptation of existing vehicles, decision making in clean bus technology selection based on total lifecycle cost, financing and procurement strategies for clean buses, role of buses in multi-modal transportation, technology innovation as well as challenges and best practices in deployment. 

Key issues to be explored

• Current policies and standards for deployment of clean buses

• EU initiatives in promoting clean buses

• Key recent trends and market outlook for clean buses in Europe

• Key legal, technical, operational and financial issues in the deployment of clean buses

• Funding strategies for procurement of clean buses

• Business models for deployment of clean buses

• Deployment of clean buses for reduction of GHG emissions and improvement of air quality 

• Role of buses in multi-modal integration 

• New technologies and innovations in clean buses

• Case studies and experiences from different cities across  Europe