Alternative fuels and fire risks. New technologies, new challenges [Next Stop #5]

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Get to the point ????

We spent the end of last week at Busworld North America in Detroit, where we run into Dafo Vehicle Fire Protection AB ’s stand and had an interesting discussion with?Risk Management Specialist Tommy Carnebo . After 20 years as a professional firefighter, he joined DAFO in late 2021 and now deal with?training, information, risk assessments. With a particular focus on alternative drive vehicles.

"Alternative fuels?don't imply bigger risks, but different risks". A good degree of basic (and less basic) knowledge should be achieved in order to deal with alternative fuel vehicles in the safest way possible. Our conversation ended up in a?video educational?focusing on simple recommendations about how to reduce risks in the operation of alternative drive buses (text HERE and below).

We see a pretty rapid?change in the bus market, that is rapidly going into alternative fuels: we deal with?CNG?buses,?LNG?buses,?hydrogen?buses and also, of course,?electric buses. And this is basically what I would like to talk a little bit about today.

I would like to start to talk about electric buses. And I would like to remind you that alternative fuel buses are not a big risk. It’s a different risk.?It’s not a bigger challenge, it’s a different challenge.?When it comes to a combustion engine, there is a clear regulation: it’s mandatory in Europe to have both detection system and suppression system. But when it comes to electric buses, you don’t even need to have a detection system.

The energy for electric buses come from the battery.And it’s a new challenge if they eventually catch fire. Batteries can catch fire from external violence, some type of electrical violence, and also also if you expose them to heat and cold. So basically we need we need to adapt the system and the buses and also the?training?of the personnel to understand the risks of this vehicles and see if we need to do some changes, because if there is, it’s unlikely but can happen, any type of malfunction of the battery on the electric bus, the battery will start to?smoke. And that is the key for making it safer.

As a firefighter, I’ve always known that if there is no smoke, there is no fire. If there is smoke, there is a fire. If there’s a fire, there’s smoke. But this reasoning doesn’t work when it comes to batteries - Continues on?sustainable-bus.com

?? Things we enjoyed reading

• More buses in disadvantaged areas! - Increasing the frequency of local bus routes in underprivileged suburbs can provide a better return on taxpayer investment “by a considerable margin” than projects such as Melbourne’s suburban rail loop, researchers have found. Keep reading on The Guardian [ The Guardian ]
• A transport revolution in Tbilisi - The reform has seen a full fleet of more than 700 buses replaced, metro lines extensively upgraded and the introduction of taxi licensing, as well as a one-card system for all public transport. The reform also includes the addition of bike and bus lanes to major roads. Keep reading on Eurocities [ Eurocities ]
• 4 surprising lessons learned from e-truck and bus pilots - Common advice you hear regarding electric truck and bus pilots include warnings like making sure to check the vehicle specifications and starting infrastructure early. While these might be helpful tips, below we review some real-world learnings and guideposts... Keep reading on Freight Waves [ FreightWaves ]
• EVs reduce asthma, air pollution - A study from the University of Southern California, released last week, showed a reduction in local air pollution levels and asthma-related emergency room visits in areas with higher concentrations of electric vehicles.?Keep reading on Smart Cities Dive [ Smart Cities Dive ]

?? Time for a quote

To ensure women feel able to use streets and transport safely and sustainably, we are prioritising efforts to change things for the better. Our Gender and Mobility Plan (Plan de Género y Movilidad) presents key areas for action, including?planning, design and management with a gender perspective; increasing the number of women working in the transport sector; more research on daily mobility and safety with a gender perspective; as well as training and awareness in gender perspectives

Manuela Lopez Menendez , Buenos Aires Secretary of Transportation and Public Works?(LINK )

?? What about a chart?