Aschaffenburg is located in the north-west of the state of Bavaria and, with a population of around 72,000, is part of the Rhine-Main metropolitan region. The bus service operated by Stadtwerke Aschaffenburg (StwAB) together with Verkehrsgesellschaft Bayerischer Untermain (VAB) forms the backbone of local public transport in the city of Aschaffenburg. The municipal utility company is responsible for transport operations, while the city of Aschaffenburg itself acts as the transport authority and finances the bus service. In total, the municipal utility company operates 15 city bus routes (lines 1–12, 14, 15, 16), which connect the regional bus station (ROB) with the city districts and surrounding area. During the day, the most important connections run every 10–20 minutes. At night, when there is no regular service, the service is supplemented by a call-and-collect transport system (ASTflex) to ensure mobility outside operating hours.
Electric and hydrogen buses
In order to align its fleet with the current trend towards electric mobility, Stadtwerke Aschaffenburg is initially putting 13 hybrid buses into service, followed by the first fully electric battery buses in 2022. These three Solaris Urbino 12 electric IV buses have a battery capacity of 440 kWh, and the manufacturer promises a range of 240 to 280 km.
The further conversion of the fleet was achieved through the procurement of 12 hydrogen buses. Ten Solaris Urbino 12 hydrogen and two Urbino 18 hydrogen articulated buses arrived in Aschaffenburg in 2024. The solo buses are equipped with 70 kW fuel cells and 30 kWh batteries, while the two articulated buses have 100 kW fuel cells and two 30 kWh high-power batteries.
All H₂ vehicles are equipped with air conditioning, USB charging sockets, an automatic passenger counting system and a passenger communication system as standard. Safety features include interior and exterior surveillance cameras and the MobileEye Shield+ assistance system, which warns of objects or people in the vicinity of the vehicle.
A modern hydrogen filling station has been built at the depot, which is also available to other customers, including the city’s public utilities. There, the vehicles can be refuelled at 350 or 700 bar. This takes about 10 minutes per bus for approx. 25 kg of hydrogen. The hydrogen is delivered by truck until a connection to the Midal-Süd interregional H₂ pipeline, which is currently under construction, can be established in the longer term.
Public funding
The cost of each of the three electric buses was around 560,000 euros. The municipal utilities received federal funding of just under one million euros for this and for the charging infrastructure. The Federal Ministry of Transport provided around 3.8 million euros in funding for the procurement of the hydrogen buses, while the Bavarian state government contributed 1.9 million euros for the construction of the hydrogen filling station.
The fleet currently consists of 48 Mercedes-Benz Citaro buses of various types, including two articulated buses and 13 hybrid buses, plus four Solaris Urbino 12 III buses from 2010 and now the 12 hydrogen buses, making a total of 64 vehicles. These buses carry approximately 5.5 million passengers per year.
