THE freezing weather last week disrupted Glasgow's electric buses, causing their batteries to drain faster than usual, and leaving people stranded during their commute.
Some of First Bus’s double-deckers were halted mid-journey due to the freezing temperatures.
A spokesperson for First Bus said that the company is "aware of challenges" concerning the range of its electric vehicles (EVs) in extremely cold temperatures.
“Temperature is one of many factors that impact the range of all electric vehicles, not just buses. There’s no rule of thumb for the reduced range. It depends on a lot of variable factors such as outside temperature, the number of passengers travelling, and the topography of the route it is travelling on.
"We are working closely with the manufacturer, to ensure we are optimising the battery capacity to its full extent and are being agile in our approach when we are faced with such conditions.”
EV batteries are lithium-based and one of the major problems is their efficiency in cold weather.
According to Scientific American, EV lithium batteries work better between zero to 60 degrees but reaching minus seven degrees the battery's average driving range drops by 12 per cent.
Introduced in 2020 in Scotland, the new electric vehicles were launched in response to Scotland’s first low-emissions zone in Glasgow city centre, along with similar zones in other major cities. Each day, 200 electric vehicles operate in the city, which also houses the UK’s largest EV charging depot.
The use of electric vehicles was implemented to meet the net zero targets set by the Scottish Government.
A regular commuter told The Times that it is a recurrent problem on the number three and M11 routes from Queen Elizabeth University to Gartnavel hospitals.
“If the weather is affecting the batteries in these buses on these routes it will be affecting other routes in Glasgow and other electric buses in other parts of Scotland,” said the commuter.
