Stakeholder collaboration models for public transport procurement of electric bus systems

Journal article, 2019

Earlier studies have mainly focused on technology, economy, and advantages of electric buses, and they have largely shown that electric buses could be one of the solutions for sustainable public transport. Despite this, the present procurement process for public transport in Sweden is not suitable for including support systems for electric buses. This study was aimed to find a stakeholder collaboration model that would allow electric bus systems to be more effectively included in the procurement process for public transport. The results were achieved by several multi-stakeholder collaboration seminars and meetings that included representatives from regional public transport authorities, bus operators, bus manufacturers, energy companies, municipalities, and experts involved in bus transport. The study primarily developed two stakeholder collaboration models, suggesting that charging infrastructure should be designed separately from the common procurement process. In these models, energy companies, electric grid owners, charging infrastructure operators, regional public transport authorities, and municipalities need to collaborate. The first model is designed for a system that includes chargers at certain locations along a route and/or stakeholders with a low level of experience of electric bus systems, while the second is designed for a system that includes bus charging at the depot and/or stakeholders with a high level of experience of electric bus systems.