Hydrogen buses
A fleet of hydrogen-powered buses was put into service in 2010 to transport competing athletes and visitors to Whistler, Canada, for the Winter Olympics. Air Liquide supplies liquid hydrogen and the distribution station for these buses, which will continue to run for ten years.
Air Liquide installed the largest hydrogen filling center ever at Whistler, near the city of Vancouver, in British Columbia (Canada). The station was installed to meet the needs of some twenty fuel cell-equipped buses servicing the Whistler community. It is the largest hydrogen-powered bus fleet in the world.
This project got off the ground in February 2010, when the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games were held in Vancouver. The ski resort town of Whistler in Canada hosted the ski and bobsled events held in connection with the 2010 Winter Olympics.
The partnership between Air Liquide and BC Transit, a transportation company, was entered into for a ten-year period, which means that the clean bus fleet will continue to shuttle passengers—tourists and local residents—between Whistler and Vancouver.
Did you know?
Vehicles that are powered by a hydrogen fuel cell do not emit CO2. Over one year, the 20 buses in the Whistler fleet will avoid the release of over 1,800 tons of greenhouse gases. Over 20 years, which is the lifetime of these vehicles, more than 36,000 tons could be avoided.
