Five New Methane-Powered Buses to Drive on City Routes
On March 3, five new buses that run on compressed methane were introduced in Tartu. They are the first ones to be utilized on city routes.
The new compressed natural gas buses look slightly different from the diesel ones, as the gas container is located on the roof, the engine is quieter and the motor only emits carbon dioxide and water vapor, according to ETV.
This also makes the new buses much more environmentally friendly, as the CO₂ emission is lower and there are almost no solid particles which form during diesel fuel combustion and constitute a particular health hazard to people, said Kuldar Väärsi, chairman of the board at transport company Sebe AS.
As the cost for a kilogram of compressed methane is 0.677 euros and the wholesale price for a liter of diesel is 1.22 euros, the gas buses save money too. Nevertheless the vehicles themselves initially cost about 15 to 20 percent more.
The new buses can also run on biogas, which the Tartu public water utility is preparing to produce, meaning that dependence on world gas prices will decrease.
Ingrid Teesalu