Santiago, the capital city of Chile, is preparing for the arrival of 3,000 hybrid
diesel-electric buses by the end of next year as part of a "Clean Air" program.
The new vehicles, which will replace an equal number of diesel buses, are being
supplied through a Brazilian joint venture involving Volvo, Marcopolo, an Eletra of Sao
Bernardo do Campo.
A trial program using three Eletra buses has been underway in revenue service in
Santiago over the past several months.
The company reported that its 24-seat hybrid minibuses will save up to 30 percent in
fuel and emit 70 percent less pollutants compared with the diesel-only variety.
Antonio Vicente Souza e Silva, Eletra’s project manager, said the hybrid vehicle
has been adapted to local traffic conditions, does not have a gear shift, and operates
with an electronic braking and acceleration system. The uses also are being tested in the
Brazilian cities of Porto Alegre and Recife, according to press reports.
The World Bank is one of the sponsors of Santiago’s "Clean Air" program
and also supports diesel-electric hybrids in other major Latin American cities including
Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Buenos Aires, Argentina; and Mexico City.
Return To International Focus
Some of these pages may include links to documents in the Adobe PDF format. Please download the Adobe PDF reader if you have not already done so.
