Next-generation carbon neutral electric bus and light commercial vehicle company Switch Mobility on Tuesday launched its electric 12 meter electric bus. The company will be delivering 50 buses shortly to Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation. It currently has an order book of over 600 buses.
Switch is looking at offering its products on different options including Mobility as a Service, wet leasing and outright purchase. The company will soon launch electric version of light commercial vehicles.
Available in two variants - EiV 12 low floor and EiV 12 standard, these buses feature customer-centric offerings on technology and passenger comfort, while being contemporary and futuristic. It is embedded with proprietary, connected technology solutions, ‘Switch iON’, enabling remote, real-time diagnostics and monitoring services, as well as digital battery management tools. The EV architecture of EiV platform is common with the recently launched European Switch e1 bus, a statement from the company stated.
According to the company, Switch EiV range of buses have been uniquely configured to meet customer requirements of varied applications like intra-city, inter-city, staff, school and tarmac, offering maximum passenger capacity and comfort. The buses are also equipped with a new generation of highly efficient, modular batteries with advanced lithium-ion NMC chemistry, specially formulated for the Indian market and climatic conditions. The modular batteries increase the capacity per battery cell for the same weight, enabling higher range of kilometers – up to 300 kms/day with single charge, and up to 500 kms/day with dual gun fast charging. The electric drivetrains and batteries are calibrated to ensure superior efficiency with long battery life, delivering lower total cost of ownership in the market. Maintenance of this ultra-modern E-Bus can be carried out quickly and effortlessly.
Having an uptime of over 98% consistently through the last few years with the current range of Switch EV buses in India, bears testimony to our product performance in terms of reliability. The buses have clocked over eight million kms in India, saving over 5,000 tonnes of CO2, equivalent to planting more than 30,000 trees, thus delivering on key strategic milestones in support of the brand’s mission: to enrich lives through green mobility and deliver cleaner, smarter journeys that are accessible to all. Switch India has a dedicated team of 450 employees and manpower is expected to grow steadily in the next five years, the company said.
Dheeraj Hinduja, Chairman, Switch Mobility, said, “The launch of our next generation electric bus platform in India is an important milestone for Switch Mobility. Our aspiration is to make electric products more accessible in India, UK, Europe and many Global markets, contributing significantly to the rapidly growing zero carbon mobility. With a strong heritage and proven expertise of the Hinduja group and Ashok Leyland in the commercial vehicle market, we are confident that through more such offerings of electric buses and soon to be launched electric light vehicles, we will accelerate our vision to be at the forefront in this evolving market.'
Mahesh Babu, Director & CEO – Switch Mobility India, COO – Switch Mobility , said, 'The platform has a unique, advanced, global EV architecture to deliver superior efficiency, safety, and reliability. The products on this platform have been designed with cutting-edge technology to deliver delightful customer experience. I strongly believe that Switch iON connected vehicle platform, offers multiple solutions to our fleet operators, to enhance the business value proposition. Our team is working actively to bring out multiple products as part of the Switch electric intelligent vehicle platform in the near future.'