Procura+ | VAG Freiburg

VAG Freiburg

SPP IN FREIBURGER VERKEHRS AG

The Freiburger Verkehrs AG is the biggest public transport operator in Freiburg with more than 800 employees. Public transport is very important for Freiburg to reach its climate goals as green city. Every year the company transports nearly 80m passengers with its 67 trams and 62 buses. Additionally, the Freiburger Verkehrs AG operates the Schauinsland cable car which carries over 300,000 guests a year to the top of the very popular destination Schauinsland, the highest mountain in the city.

SPP HIGHLIGHTS

The trams and the cable car are operated using 100 % green energy
Energy produced by the braking-process can be used by the tram and fed back into the power supply system
The flywheel-store at one of the terminal stops is able to accumulate braking energy and to release it as needed to starting or accelerating trams
The Buses are operated using sulphur-free diesel fuel since 1997
Every bus is equipped with most modern filter-systems
Solely rainwater is used to clean the trams and buses
Four e-cars have been added to the VAG car pool
A solar plant on the roof of the bus garage produces 20.000 kWh green energy every year
Four photovoltaic installations generate 580.000 kWh green energy every year
The company-owned block heat and power plant produces 1 Mio kWh power and 1,5 Mio kWh heat every year
In the educational program "Bus- and Tramschool", children learn about safety in and around our vehicles, but also about climate protection and the role of public transportation.

Population: 230,000
Employees: 850
Date joined: 2015

CONTACT

Stephanie Wiehle
Head of Procurement

Website (German)

More information? Send an email to procurement@iclei.org

SPP IN ACTION

POLICY AND STRATEGY

A requirement that the existing VAG bus fleet meet at least EURO 5 standard forms part of the company’s environmental strategy. Other elements of this strategy include using 100% green energy in tram operation and a tram washing system which collects and reuses rainwater.

Procurement of Clean Busses:

In 2010 VAG Freiburg decided to retrofit buses with particulate- filters. 5 buses were retrofitted, going from a EURO 3 standard to EURO 5. Two options were available to ensure that the whole bus fleet met its obligatory EURO 5 standard: either sell the buses and buy new ones, or retrofit the existing stock. The decision to retrofit the buses instead of replacing them was the more cost effective option for achieving the set emission goals. VAG used this project as a pilot to gain experience, as this type of retrofitting was not well established in the market at the time and few other companies had experience in this area.

Procurement Approach:

VAG decided to retrofit its buses with a complete system that was offered on the market rather than buying individual components. In a first step a market analysis was carried out to learn about the available suppliers and systems. The decision to buy the same system that was already being used in newer buses reduced the range of systems to choose from. As the estimated project costs were well below the EU limit for European-wide tenders, VAG requested offers only from possible suppliers of the SCRT system. The offers were analysed and the supplier with the best offer was chosen.

Keeping Track of SPP:

The supplier of the SCRT system commissioned TÜV Nord (a German testing institute) to measure the gaseous and particulate pollutants. Different measurements on an engine test bed were carried out. The engine was measured with and without the retrofitting system. The test results showed that the retrofitting system reduced CO emissions by 92.5%, NMHC by 92.25%, NOx by 81.5% and PM (particulates) by 78%.

EXPLORE MORE

Projects and Initatives

Clean Fleets: Buying cleaner, greener vehicles.
- Website

Resources

Case study: retrofitting buses in Freiburg

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