The government has authorized the circulation of electric buses in the city of Buenos Aires

The government has authorized the integration of eight electric buses to the public transport system of the city of Buenos Aires. There will be eight four-line vehicles – 12, 34, 39 and 59 – and their arrival will be part of a pilot test to badess the feasibility of its phased implementation in the federal capital.

The measure was communicated in resolution 284/2019, published Tuesday in the Official Journal. The text explains that the test will last one year and will serve, in principle, "study bus operations and determine their capabilities, viability and optimization"

The objective of the measure, which is part of the 2035 clean mobility plan promoted by the city of Buenos Aires in 2018, will be "Achieve the progressivity and sustainability of these new lower emission technologies"

More specifically, this plan, announced in 2018, aims to reduce transport sector emissions by 14% to 50% of pollutants by thenas well as the incorporation of clean technologies, not only in communities, but also in taxis and public utilities.

In fact, the arrival of this technology in the city was announced at the end of last year. In this line, this Wednesday, the Minister of Transport, Guillermo Dietrichand the mayor of Buenos Aires, Horacio Rodríguez Larreta, introduced the first two electric buses of line 59.

On this occasion, accessed by this means, the Ministry of Transport clarified that there would be four fast-loading buses (one of line 12, two of 34 and one of 39). In these cases, 100% of the battery is charged in 40 minutes and the procedure is performed at night. These groups offer a range of about 70 kilometers.

The other four vehicles will be slow loading (one of line 12, one of 39 and two of 59). These models require two to five hours to reach a 100% load and the estimated range is about 220 kilometers..

The city follows the footsteps of Chile, which became the pioneer country of the region, with 102 such collectives in Santiago last year. Chile has become the second largest fleet after China.

However, in the city there are already two groups working with another type of energy, cleaner than fossil fuels. They belong to lines 91 and 132 and work with biodiesel. As, Mendoza bought 18 electric buses in December 2018 that should be implemented this year.

As for the rest of Latin America, four more cities will have electric buses on their streets this yearColombians in Medellin and Cali will have 64 and 20 respectively, Ecuadorian Guayaquil will have 20, against 15 in San Pablo.

The transition to clean energy is considered a priority in most countries. According to a report published by the World Bank in December 2017, transport accounts for 15% of total greenhouse gas emissions. And if drastic measures are not taken, their number could reach 33% by 2050.

As for Latin America, a report from the UN agency for the environment – also by the end of 2017 – It also indicates that urban transport accounts for 19% of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.

The text explains that if the entire collective fleet and taxis of 22 cities in 12 countries of the region had been entirely replaced that year, By 2030, nearly $ 64 billion in fuel would have been saved and 300 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent would have been released..

In addition, he indicated that the transition help prevent the deaths of more than 36,500 people because of respiratory diseases badociated with the quality of the air. Since the fleets have not been replaced since then, all figures would be reduced if the estimates were moved to the present.

However, among its main challenges are the financing problems to buy these collectives -the models are more expensive than those running on diesel or natural gas- and to install the different loading points needed.

In contrast, China is one of the leading countries in the transition to electric mobility. The Asian nation, the world's leading manufacturer of this type of vehicle, integrates 9,500 electric buses per week.