Minister for Climate Action, Communication Networks and Transport Eamon Ryan TD, has welcomed the commencement of a multi-week trial of a hydrogen fuel cell electric bus in the transport fleet.
This will be the first ever hydrogen bus put into public service operation in Ireland and forms part of the Department of Transport’s Low Emission Bus Trials. The vehicle will be trialled on a number of routes across Dublin by Bus Éireann, Dublin Bus, Dublin City University (DCU) and Dublin Airport from November to mid-December. The results will form part of the decision making process to help further transition our public transport fleet to lower emitting fuels and technologies.
Commenting on the trial, Minister for Climate Action, Communication Networks and Transport Eamon Ryan TD said:
Moving our urban bus fleet to cleaner and greener technologies is essential if we are to further reduce the carbon footprint of our public transport system and limit air pollutant emissions in our cities. Under the National Development Plan, Ireland committed to stop buying diesel-only urban buses and to transition to lower-emission alternatives.
Minister Ryan continued:
I am delighted to welcome this Low Emission Trial of a H2 City Gold hydrogen fuel cell electric bus, with the assistance of Hydrogen Mobility Ireland and CaetanoBus. The bus runs on hydrogen and emits only water from its exhaust. The trial will provide us with real world insight into the operation, refuelling and environmental impact of this innovative technology as well as enabling comparisons with the previously tested bus technologies.
This trial is a follow up to the 2019 Low Emission Bus Trial which tested a number of different fuels and technologies on real bus routes in Dublin and Cork Cities. Electric, hybrid, gas and retro-fitted buses were assessed under a range of criteria, including emission levels, energy efficiency, costs, and infrastructural requirements. At the time, due to the modern nature of the technology, it was not possible to source a hydrogen bus to take part in the trial.
Today’s hugely significant step will be followed early next year by a National Transport Authority pilot programme, involving a number of Double Decker Hydrogen Fuel Cell Electric buses. Examining all available technologies is essential as we determine how best to power our future urban bus fleets, while improving sustainability and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Commenting on today’s launch, Mark Teevan, Chair of Hydrogen Mobility Ireland said:
Hydrogen Mobility Ireland was formed last year by a group of activist companies that want to move forward with the introduction of fuel cell transport here. By year’s end we had published a roadmap to do so and are now focused on actual delivery. This 8 week trial marks the start of that new phase and we intend to launch the first hydrogen refuelling stations, and hydrogen powered vehicles for sale, during 2023. We see hydrogen fuel cell transport as being critical to delivering on the targets in the government’s 2019 Climate Action Plan and have, since the beginning, been working closely with the Department of Transport and other government stakeholders on its introduction.