What began with a feasibility study around two years ago at Werner Gimmler Wetzlarer Verkehrsbetriebe und Reisebüro GmbH (Gimmler Reisen for short) has now become a reality: a purely emission-free regular service in Wetzlar’s old town with electrically powered Mercedes-Benz buses.
With the upcoming winter timetable, the Mercedes-Benz eCitaro K electric buses will serve the 5.2 kilometre long newly named “Altstadtlinie” (old town line). The old town line replaces the existing city bus concept, which was previously independent of city traffic, and integrates it firmly into the route and fare system of the city of Wetzlar.
From Monday to Sunday, the electric buses will transport passengers from the train station to the historic city centre with its cathedral, museums and idyllic Lahn riverbank. Gimmler Reisen has specifically opted for the eCitaro K because of the narrow old town conditions. With a length of only 10.63 metres and a small turning circle of around 17 metres, the eCitaro K is manoeuvrable enough to master even narrow passages with confidence.
The vehicles are also equipped with the modern MirrorCam system. High-resolution cameras replace the classic exterior mirror and expand the driver’s field of vision. This allows pedestrians or cyclists to be detected earlier, for example, and the blind spot is eliminated when turning right.
In combination with Sideguard Assist 2, integrated as standard on the right and left, this is a clear safety advantage, especially for the narrow sections of Wetzlar’s old town, where many tourists visit the medieval alleys.
The eCitaro K buses are equipped with the NMC3 battery generation. Each vehicle has five battery packs installed and a total capacity of around 490 kWh. Enough energy to reliably operate the daily routes of around 250 kilometres and thus the old town line for a day without intermediate charging.
The subsidiary Daimler Buses Solutions has taken over the turnkey implementation of the charging infrastructure, including planning, construction and software-based, intelligent charging management. The electric mobility professionals have created six charging points at the Gimmler Reisen depot. The charging capacity per permanently installed charging point is 90 kW on average, with up to 180 kW per charging point possible for short-term interim charging. The electric buses are charged on the right side of the vehicle with plugs.
