Optima sells its first hybrid bus

Optima sells its first hybrid bus
BY DAN VOORHIS
The Wichita Eagle


Excerpt:
"What makes this bus a hybrid is its combination diesel-electric engine, similar to the combination gas-electric engine that is in cars such as the Toyota Prius. The Sedgwick County government loaned Optima $100,000 to develop the hybrid.

The bus is designed to run best in stop-and-go city traffic, where the braking of the bus recharges the electric capacitors that power the wheels. The hybrid engine uses 20 percent to 40 percent less fuel than a standard diesel engine, the company said."

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