Are electric buses the new mega trend now? Fajar takes a tour of the fair to answer this question and to scoop up other insights from the show.

For the first time we feature the world largest exhibition for commercial vehicles, the IAA Commercial Vehicles, in our seventh issue of Asian Buses. It is the 66th IAA in Hannover, Germany, as the leading international trade fair for mobility, transportation and logistics. The origins of the IAA can be traced back for more than 100 years. In 1897, eight motor vehicles were exhibited to the public at the Bristol Hotel in Berlin. From these humble beginnings, a regular exhibition was established that, due to its high visitor turnout, had to be separated into an alternating exhibition of passenger cars and commercial vehicles in 1991. In odd-numbered years the IAA Cars is held in Frankfurt; even-numbered years see the IAA Commercial Vehicles in Hannover.

Impressions
Luxurious and innovative are my two words to describe the IAA 2016 for the exhibits in the bus category. I was impressed with the new technologies brought by each bus company, and it has automatically changed the way I look at a bus now. For this year, what I can conclude is that key players in bus world are focusing on the concept of the fully electric bus, and that it is going to be a hard game for alternative fuels to find a footing in this segment.

An eye-catching design and the striking colours of a bus body makes you feel like you want to start using public transport and further more, the discussion on the alternative fuels is one of the hot topics for the bus industry now. Bus manufacturers I spoke to claimed that even if they lost money for investing on alternative fuels, they will not stop but keep educating the society on this new approach because they see the potential of a better future in long term.

The expo was huge and it hurts my feet to walk all day at the expo, so it was a relief when I saw they provide a shuttle-bus to go around at the fair gorunds. And true to the spirit of the event, it was all new buses! As I stepped into the bus, I felt free, quiet and very comfortable, plus with the new approach to designing the entries, it made it easy to hop on and off from the buses.

Services
IAA 2016 definitely gives a whole new idea to change the mindset of the society as well as the industry. Users have been convinced that it is going to be hassle every time they want to use public transport: confined spaces lead you to squeeze yourself in with strangers, no privacy and less comfort which can affect your mood for the day. Well not anymore.

Scania displayed their hybrid and biogas buses at IAA 2016 together with special features that take comfort into the next level. According to Mr Christian Levin, Executive Vice President Sales and Marketing for Scania, introducing the alternative fuels to the society is quite a challenge for them as convincing people to accept changes would take a bit of an effort.

Lamilux is one of the most Europe’s most established and experienced manufacturers of daylight system and fibre-reinforced composites in the world.

Meanwhile, being one of the leading companies in the sector of production of insulation materials for construction for over 50 years, Brianza Plastica just opened their second production site in Rovigo.

A low floor city bus from a Turkish company was looking very compact and it is the smallest electrical bus with wheelchair accessibility, giving full utilization on narrow roads. We also saw a bus company from China which is aiming for zero emission and no pollution to the environment with their 20 meter pure electric buses.

Besides the innovations to be seen, IAA 2016 was one big family gathering for everyone in the commercial vehicle industry. Naturally, there is tough competition between suppliers, customers, and manufacturers but you can see everyone is trying to make the world a better place to live in. When the demand is high, that is when you know you are doing something right for the industry.