De Lijn starts operation with the first new generation of electric buses from Dutch manufacturer VDL at the Destelbergen depot today, on 1 July 2024. The first 5 of 24 VDL LF-122 e-buses will join the Flemish transport company’s electric fleet in the Ghent region.
“The first five VDL e-buses will be put into service at the Destelbergen depot from 1 July. This depot is expecting five more e-buses in the coming weeks and months, while the other 14 vehicles from this order with VDL will be deployed from the Sint-Niklaas depot. During the last legislative period, we effectively implemented the conversion of the bus fleet at De Lijn to emission-free operation. The additional investment funds made available enabled the transport company to place several orders for new vehicles. De Lijn only buys green electricity, so there are no emissions from energy production either,” said the outgoing Flemish Minister for Mobility and Public Works, Lydia Peeters.
Ann Schoubs, Director General of De Lijn, about the new buses: “Like all other e-buses, they have many advantages that increase passenger comfort, such as USB charging stations for smartphones, extra-wide information screens with stop information, electrically operated ramps for less mobile travellers, seats with recycled leather, a carpet with …” wood-look carpet and improved ventilation. But the safety and comfort of our drivers have also been taken into account. The e-buses are equipped with safety features that would not be out of place even in the most modern cars, such as cameras instead of mirrors and several detection systems for recognising pedestrians and cyclists. Particular attention has been paid to the driver’s seat, which has its own air conditioning and a heated and ventilated seat.” The new VDL e-buses offer 45 seats with a total capacity of 110 passengers.
The new e-buses will serve the Ghent region from Destelbergen. When they enter service, the Ghent bus fleet will be rejuvenated. De Lijn, a major transport company in the Flemish part of Belgium, intends to convert its entire fleet to electric operation by 2035.
In the past, De Lijn has repeatedly attracted attention with large orders for electric buses, with major orders for Van Hool and VDL and a framework agreement with Iveco at the beginning of 2023 for up to 500 electric buses, of which more than 100 have already been firmly ordered. Investments in the accompanying infrastructure are also part of De Lijn’s scope of investment, such as last November with more than 1,600 charging stations for e-buses over a period of eight years, to be supplied by ABB and SPIE-Ekoenergetyka. Most recently, in January 2024, the public transport operator signed a memorandum of understanding about the delivery of up to 500 fully electric 12-metre buses from BYD, with an initial call-off of 92 buses from this agreement. The e-buses produced by BYD in Hungary will be delivered to De Lijn from 2025 onwards.
In January 2024, another framework agreement was signed for up to 100 e-buses, this time with the Spanish manufacturer Irizar e-mobility to supply its “ie tram” model for bus transport in accordance with the BRT standard. They are to be used on special routes, e.g. on three routes in the province of Limburg (Hasselt-Maastricht, Hasselt-Maasmechelen and Hasselt-Pelt) and in the Kortrijk region of West Flanders. No time frame has been set for the additional lines – Hasselt-Maasmechelen is scheduled to go into operation in 2025. However, no vehicle has yet been called up yet form this framework agreement.
