Yutong ZK6125BEVGS (E12DD)

Yutong ZK6125BEVGS (E12DD)
Manufacturer	Zhengzhou Yutong Bus Co., Ltd.
Bodywork	Yutong Integral
Years in operation	2020—Present
Operators	Tower Transit Singapore Go-Ahead Singapore SMRT Buses
Length	12 metre
Motor	Permanent magnet synchronous motor
Accessibility	Low floor
Emission Standard	Zero tailpipe emissions

The Yutong ZK6125BEVGS (E12DD) is a fully electric double-deck city bus manufactured by Yutong in China. The bus model shares its model name with the more prevalent Yutong E12 single-deck electric city bus.

10 units of the Yutong E12DD bus were procured by the Land Transport Authority in 2018 as part of efforts to build a more environmentally friendly public bus fleet. A further 10 more Yutong E12 single-deck electric buses would be acquired, for a total of 20 Yutong electric buses. In total, 60 electric buses were procured from three separate manufacturers at a total sum of S$50.64 million.

For Singapore road trials, Yutong E12DD buses are leased to Tower Transit (3 units), Go-Ahead (4 units) and SMRT Buses (3 units). Revenue service commenced on 27 October 2020, with buses initially deployed to Bus Services 83, 189 & 983 on a regular basis. Overnight chargers were installed at Bulim Bus Depot and Loyang Bus Depot, supplied by NARI.

Bus operators in China are primary customers of the Yutong E12DD, with units operating in the Chinese cities of Guangzhou, Shangqiu, Zhengzhou and Zhoukou.

Background

The Yutong E12DD is marketed as an electric city bus capable of being fitted as a sightseeing bus, with a large upper deck windshield, large side windows and a panoramic sunroof, along with a suite of configurable interiors features for passenger comfort.

The bus design incorporates large-capacity batteries which allow the bus to travel more than 200 km on a single charge, under urban road conditions. Yutong touts cost savings of over 30% over a 5-year period as compared to an equivalent diesel-powered double-deck bus. Constant-power charging is said to reduce charging times by 25%; allowing for a charging period of just 1.9 hours at night. The Singapore units have a battery capacity of 422 kWh, providing a quoted range of 215 km via 90kW slow charging for 4 hours.

Yutong ReCtrl Electric Drive

Yutong's Electric Drive Technology (Click to expand)

Introduction

The Yutong E12DD is a fully electric city bus manufactured by the Chinese company Zhengzhou Yutong Bus Co., Ltd (郑州宇通客车股份有限公司), which manufactures road vehicles (primarily buses). The E12DD is just one of Yutong’s electric bus products, alongside hybrid and regular diesel buses.

Photos of the Yutong E12DD were first circulated online in late August 2019, where the bus was spotted at a test centre in China.

The exterior bodywork styling appears to be modified off the original E12DD, but fitted with a different head and rear design that possibly takes inspiration from the Yutong City Master, and a front bumper/headlight design taken from the Yutong U12. The Yutong E12DD is offered at a length of 12.3 metres as standard, but shortened to 12 metres for the Singapore market.

The bus body is constructed out of high-strength steel. Features offered include IP68-rated electronics, electronically-controlled air suspension, dual-circuit air brakes with ABS among others, which are common to most modern buses. It is noted that a significant portion of space on the lower deck is occupied by batteries, hence the reduced passenger cabin space.

The buses were spotted in Singapore in February 2020.

Yutong E12DD buses are assigned the registration numbers SG7000S – SG7009T. All units were registered between 4 June 2020 – 20 July 2020, with SMRT Buses, Tower Transit Singapore and Go-Ahead Singapore receiving these buses.

The steel monocoque structure and the weight of batteries contribute to the heavy unladen weight of the Yutong E12DD, at around 17.1 tonnes. For comparison, both the MAN A95 and Volvo B9TL each weigh around 15 tonnes unladen.

The Yutong E12DD also shares many similar subsystems with the Yutong E12 single-deck electric buses. such as electronic display signs and passenger information displays from LECIP, and driver assistance/management systems from TNT Surveillance (collision warning, anti-fatigue and telematics systems).

Finally, the Yutong E12DD is the first production batch of buses to be fitted with a rear-axle steering system, or RAS (supplied by ZF).  The trailing axle pivots in the opposite direction to the bus’ steering direction, which improves the turning radius and reduces wear on rear tyres. This feature was only previously featured on the 12.8-metre long MAN A95 – Lion’s City DD (3-Door) Concept Bus.

Media Event

A media event was held on 27 October 2020 at Bulim Bus Depot. Buses made their revenue service debut later that same day.

Facebook post at: https://www.facebook.com/WeKeepYourWorldMoving/posts/4581843525219181

Fleet

The 10 Yutong E12DD buses are registered as SG7000S – SG7009T.

These buses, registered as YUTONG ELECTRIC ZK6125BEVGS AUTO, are leased to the following operators:

• SG7003J, SG7004G, SG7005D (Registered on 4 Jun 2020)
  Tower Transit Singapore
• SG7006B, SG7007Z, SG7008X (Registered on 5 Jun 2020);
  SG7009T (Registered on 20 Jul 2020)
  Go-Ahead Singapore
• SG7000S, SG7001P, SG7002L (Registered on 4 Jun 2020)
  SMRT Buses

Revenue Service

Revenue service commenced on the evening of Tuesday, 27 October 2020. Buses were deployed on:

• Go-Ahead Bus Service 83
  with interlining to Service 118 & 118A
• SMRT Bus Service 983
• Tower Transit Bus Service 189

Charging Infrastructure

For the overnight charging of the Yutong E12DD buses, overnight chargers have been installed at Bulim Bus Depot (14 chargers) and Loyang Bus Depot (8 chargers), supplied by NARI.

Gallery:

See Also:

• Yutong E12

External Links & References:

• E12DD（双层纯电公交）- Yutong
• ZK6115HGS2 （观光车）- Yutong
• Update on Deployment of Electric Buses – LTA

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The post Yutong ZK6125BEVGS (E12DD) first appeared on Land Transport Guru.