The CHIC (Clean Hydrogen in European Cities) Project kicked off on 4 November in Cologne. The EU-funded project will enable 26 fuel cell buses to be integrated into regular daily service in five European cities. At least three of the manufacturers - Mercedes-Benz, Van Hool and Wrightbus - are supplying hybrid fuel cell vehicles for this project.

The project is running on the basis of a gradual introduction of fuel cell buses with hydrogen propulsion and its objective is to support the development of fuel cell-powered bus fleets and the infrastructure required to run them. The vehicles will be deployed in Aarau, Bolzano, Milan, London and Oslo.

The experience gained from projects already running in Berlin, Hamburg, Cologne and Whistler (Canada) will flow into this one. These are cities which participated in the successful precursor projects CUTE and HyFLEET:CUTE from 2003 to 2009. The experience and the data collected in this project will guide and support 14 European regions as they, in the next phase, seek to develop fuel cell-powered bus fleets and the appropriate infrastructure.

The Mercedes-Benz Citaro FuelCELL Hybrid made its debut in Hamburg last November. This latest-generation fuel cell hybrid bus is distinguished by its environmental compatibility: it operates emission-free and almost soundlessly. As a result the Citaro FuelCELL Hybrid is ideally suited for deployment in traffic-dense city centres and metropolitan areas.

Thanks to improved fuel cell components and hybridisation with lithium-ion batteries, the Citaro FuelCELL Hybrid generates a hydrogen saving of almost 50 percent compared with the previous generation. The operating range of the fuel cell bus is around 250 kilometres. And the fuel-cell drive system is virtually maintenance-free and extremely long-lasting.

Daimler will operate the Citaro FuelCELL Hybrid as part of a large-scale fleet trial for the CHIC Project. This is a continuation of the successful CUTE and HyFLEET:CUTE European Union projects, which ran between 2003 and 2009. In total, 36 Mercedes-Benz Citaro vehicles with second-generation fuel-cell drive have shown outstanding performance in twelve transport systems on three continents. Covering more than 2.2 million kilometres in over 140,000 operating hours, Mercedes-Benz buses equipped with environmentally compatible fuel-cell drive systems have demonstrated to great effect their suitability for everyday operation.

The global initiative "Shaping Future Transportation" combines current activities to focus on sustainable mobility in the Commercial Vehicles Division of Daimler AG. The aim of this initiative is to use clean, efficient drive systems in conjunction with alternative fuels to make zero-emission commercial vehicles a reality for tomorrow’s transportation needs. Further targets of the initiative include protecting resources, reducing emissions, and maximising traffic safety. The Citaro FuelCELL Hybrid, which has been developed with the support of the European Union, plays a key role in this context.