What’s more, the TOSA buses on line 23 will be equipped with USB ports located by the seats facing each other towards the front of the vehicle. That way, the TOSA passengers can recharge the batteries of their mobile devices with clean energy while on the move!
The batteries of the TOSA buses are mounted on the roof of the vehicle, which means that the entire floor is flat and low. They weigh barely one tonne and have a storage capacity of around 73 kWh of electricity. By way of comparison, Tesla S cars have a capacity of 60 à 100 kWh, depending on the model. TOSA buses do not need powerful batteries because autonomy is not a key factor. Thanks to the flash-charging technology that enables the batteries to partially recharge en route, TOSA buses don’t need the battery capacity of an electric bus that is recharged overnight and weighs an extra five to seven tonnes!
This means that TOSA buses transport more passengers and fewer batteries than conventional electric buses, which is obviously good for the environment as it reduces the number of batteries to be recycled.