In co-operation with EDF and Sillages STGA, a week of experimentation and a showcase day for the electric bus on Wednesday November 14th at the convention centre in Juan-les-Pins.
It is small, silent and comfortable. It can thread its way through the small streets of old Antibes. However, its main quality is that it’s environmentally friendly. There are no noxious gases to breathe when you are nearby because it’s electric. The « Gepebus » bus was used by inhabitants of Antibes from November 8th to 14th on several routes within the city centre enabling the Antibes city council to test it.
At the city’s request, Electricité de France has accepted to carry out tests on the minibus equipped with a OREOS 22 battery in cooperation with Sillages STGA. Made in Italy by the manufacturer « Technobus » and marketed by the company « Gepebus », subsidiary of « PVI » (Ponticelli industrial vehicles), this minibus has a capacity of 22 seats and intercheangable lead acid batteries power it, which gives a maximum capacity of 110km/day. Several batteries and equipment allowing the driver of the bus to charge these batteries ensure to use it without interruption. The maximum speed is 35 km/h.
If it is experimentation for Antibes, this electric bus already operates in Rome and Florence to access their historic centre. Forty-two vehicles of this type have been running in each city for more than five years. Equipped with removable batteries, these minibuses can run 12 up to 15 hours a day. Bordeaux has also adopted the same system with six electric minibuses, which have been in service for six months now. In addition to this example in Bordeaux, minibuses are a serious option in France since about 300 vehicles already run in the networks.
The experimentation of the electric bus in Antibes will end by a showcase day, on Wednesday November 14th, from 10.00 to 12.30 at the convention centre of Juan-les-Pins with representatives of several cities of the South, representatives of the « AMDE » and the presence of Pierre De Laporte, president of EDF and the « Espace pour Demain ».