GOTHENBURG, Sweden, Sept. 26 (UPI) -- Vehicle maker Volvo has said its first hybrid buses will soon be tested on the streets of London and Gothenburg, Sweden.
The Volvo 7700 would be the first commercial hybrid, electric- and gas-powered bus on the market, the company said.
The bus runs with a diesel engine and an electric motor, which helps lower fuel consumption by 30 percent, The Local reported Friday.
"Since we developed the components internally, we have been able to optimize the bus's fuel consumption fully. At the same time we could ensure very high reliability," Volvo Bus Corp. President Hakan Karlsson said in a statement.
In part of the bus' power feedback system, the batteries are recharged when the brakes are applied, the company said.
The buses, which are scheduled for tests on city streets this fall, will pull away from the curb using the electric motor. "When the bus reaches 15-20 kilometers per hour, the diesel engine starts up automatically," Karlsson said.
