Milan orders another 100 Urbino 12 electric buses. The 1000th electric Solaris bus is among them!

The Milanese operator ATM has decided to commission another 100 electric buses from Solaris, going through with another batch of a framework contract signed last year. The first batch of 40 Urbino electric buses under the same contract has been already delivered.

In line with the framework contract, the Milanese carrier commissioned Solaris to execute yet another batch of the order – 100 zero-emission 12-meter electric buses. Together with the supply of 40 units purchased by ATM Milano in 2019, the number of Urbino electric buses will raise to 140. Solaris is to deliver the newly ordered 100 vehicles to the Italian fashion capital in the first half of 2021. Once the contract is fully performed, there will be up to 275 zero-emission Solaris vehicles servicing transport in Milan in total. The first electric buses – 25 Urbino 12 electric – appeared in Milan already back in 2018 and 2019.

“We are extremely happy that we have the opportunity to supply ATM in Milan with more electric Solaris buses. It is a huge investment, not only in modern, safe and comfortable municipal transport, but above all in clean air and improved quality of life,” notes Alberto Fiore, Managing Director of Solaris Italia.

Milan-based ATM has decided in favour of customised retrofitting of the buses with two innovative solutions. The first of these is Mobileye Shield+, a warning system – using acoustic and visual alerts – indicating objects in a driver’s blind spot, indicating when a vehicle changes lanes without signalling beforehand or signalling that the appropriate distance to the vehicle in front is not maintained. The second one is MirrorEye, a solution which will be implemented – for testing purposes – in one electric bus for Milan. This solution consists in replacing side mirrors with cameras ensuring a much better visibility, in particular at night and in difficult weather conditions.

The successive execution of the tender for the supply of 250 electric buses for ATM in Milan is confirmation of earlier declarations of the Italian carrier, in line with which the transport company intends to do without any diesel buses by the end of 2030. The cooperation of Solaris and ATM in Milan began in 2014. Since then, the manufacturer has already delivered 200 vehicles, including 25 electric.

“The possibility of cooperation with such an accomplished carrier as the ATM in Milan is an invaluable experience for us. It is an honour to be once again invited to co-create a future of public transport in Milan free of pollution and noise,” remarks Petros Spinaris, Board Member for Sales, Marketing and Customer Service, Solaris Bus & Coach sp. z o.o.

It is worth noting that the 1000th electric bus to roll out of the Solaris factory will be among the 100 newly ordered Urbino 12 electric for Milan. The first battery bus Urbino electric was presented in 2011. Since then, the electric Solaris have been already ordered by nearly 100 customers from 18 countries. In 2017, the Solaris Urbino electric was elected the best city bus in Europe.

“Electromobility is not an empty phrase. 1000 sold electric buses is a proud accomplishment all of our company’s employees have worked for. We have been setting new standards of urban transport for years and have a real impact on the sustainable development of transport in cities. All of that would not have been possible without the trust of our clients. We thank you!”, underscores Petros Spinaris.