China International Bus Expo

Hamburg's public transport operator Hochbahn plans to procure up to 240 additional electric buses by 2031. At the same time, the fleet is to be expanded by up to 150 additional vehicles with conventional drivetrains. While this move continues the electrification of public transport, the operator's previously targeted goal of a fully emission-free bus fleet by 2032 is now being pushed further into the future.

As is well known, Hochbahn has been procuring exclusively zero-emission buses since 2020. Currently, 432 buses operate as fully battery-electric, accounting for around 39 per cent of the total fleet. A small number of hybrid buses are also in service. In total, nearly 500 of approximately 1,200 city buses are now electrified, as Hendryk Münster, Head of Department at Hamburger Hochbahn, recently stated in an interview with electrive.

With the planned procurement of up to 240 additional electric buses, the share of fully electric vehicles could rise to 60 per cent by 2031. The additional electric buses will likely come from the framework agreement concluded at the end of 2024 with Daimler Buses. At the time, Daimler Buses was named as the sole supplier for up to 350 electric buses of the types Mercedes-Benz eCitaro and eCitaro G. However, one year before the previously stated target year of 2032, around 40 per cent of the fleet would still not be fully electric.

At the same time, Hamburger Hochbahn has announced plans to add up to 150 additional vehicles to its fleet, which will be fuelled with HVO instead of diesel. Since January 2026, existing conventionally powered vehicles have been gradually transitioned to HVO fuels to ‘significantly reduce the calculated CO₂ emissions for the part of the bus fleet not yet converted to battery-electric drive.’ However, this will only involve a ‘limited number of HVO-fuelled buses.’ Hochbahn has not provided further details.