- Beijing public transport authority orders low-floor axle systems for about 2 200 buses
- All buses also feature steering systems from ZF Lenksysteme GmbH
- Delivery will take place in 2013
The Beijing Public Transport Corporation (BPTC) placed a major order for low-floor axles with ZF: About 2 200 buses from Chinese production will be equipped with ZF technology and delivered to Beijing in 2013.
China’s capital continues to count on technology from ZF for the expansion of its fleet of low-floor buses: In the course of 2013, the automotive supplier will deliver low-floor axle sets to be installed in approximately 2 200 buses of Chinese manufacturers for Beijing. For ZF, this means a large supply volume of more than 5 000 axle systems as several axle sets are installed in each bus – including components like shock absorbers and chassis modules: From the RL 85 EC front axle system, providing for a wide center aisle in the passenger compartment and a floor height of only 350 millimeters, to the AV132 drive axle and the AVN132 tag axle. Their low floor heights allow for the step-free and therefore quicker entry and exit at all doors: This increases passenger flow and enables the bus lines to be operated efficiently. As a result, bus idle times at every BRT bus stop are just half as long, i.e. only 16 seconds.
The ZF-Servocom, a ball-and-nut power steering system, is supplied by ZF Lenksysteme, a 50:50 joint venture of ZF and Bosch, for all 2 200 buses. It supports the precise steering behavior of buses equipped with ZF’s low-floor technology. BPTC also ordered this steering system for another 800 intercity buses.
“We are very delighted about this new order from Beijing,” says Andreas Moser, Head of ZF’s CV Axle Systems business unit: “The Beijing BPTC public transport authority and ZF have been linked by a strategic partnership for years regarding the establishment and expansion of the low-floor bus fleet.” Since 2004, BPTC has promoted the expansion of the municipal passenger transport system and is increasingly relying on low-floor buses. Today, BPTC operates more than 28 000 buses over a distance of around 187 500 kilometers. ZF has meanwhile provided the Beijing bus fleet with about 15 000 axles and 800 automatic transmissions – excluding the recent major order. In addition, ZF Lenksysteme has supplied 18 000 Servocom steering systems.
