Cologne, 3 April 2008:
By purchasing 17 regular-service city buses of the Mercedes-Benz Citaro brand the public transportation operator RVK (Regionalverkehr Köln GmbH) is rejuvenating its fleet. The vehicles were presented on 24 July 2008 at the RVK company premises in Euskirchen by Hansmartin Rosin, the factory delegate for public local transport of the Mercedes-Benz Bus and Coach unit; Eugen Puderbach, Head of RVK; and Dr. Rainer Klein-Lüpke, Head of SVE (Stadtverkehr Euskirchen).

Although the future domain of the new Citaro buses, the district capital of Euskirchen, is currently still far away from the low emission zone for reducing particulate matter figures, the RVK has already had the buses equipped with environmentally friendly EEV diesel engines. "The decision in favour of Mercedes-Benz was primarily based on economic factors, environmentally friendly vehicle technology and emissions standards," explained Puderbach. Dr. Klein-Lüpke added, "As a transport operator we strive to make progress in the efforts to achieve cleaner city-centre services". The EEV (Enhanced Environmentally Friendly Vehicles) emissions standard is a designation for diesel vehicles with particularly low emissions based on Blue-Tec Euro 5 engines with an additional diesel particulate filter.

The 17 Mercedes-Benz Citaro buses are all low-floor buses of the latest generation. The buses comprise eight 12-metre and nine 10.5-metre Citaro K buses which are particularly suited to the needs of Euskirchen's city traffic. Each vehicle is equipped with disc brakes all round, anti-lock braking system (ABS) and acceleration skid control (ASR). An electronic level control (ENR) allows one side of the vehicle to kneel down to kerb level, which makes it easy for passengers to board and deboard. At the second door a folding ramp is available along with a signalling button at wheelchair height on the outside of the bus. In the interior an on-board computer controls the modern bus stop information system: a TFT monitor shows the passengers the current stop and the following three stops and is supported by an audible recorded announcement. The proper climate inside the vehicle is ensured by the passenger air conditioning system and a separate air conditioning system for the driver.

The horizontally built-in six-cylinder in-line engine OM 457 (h)LA, EEV, with an output of 220 kW (299 hp) provides an ideal combination of performance and economy. The engine develops a maximum torque of 1250 Nm from as low as 1100 rpm. The engine uses state-of-the-art Blue-Tec diesel technology based on SCR (Selective Catalytic Reduction). This combination of in-engine and downstream measures reduces particle emissions and significantly reduces nitrogen oxide. During this process an aqueous reduction solution known as AdBlue flows from an auxiliary tank into the hot engine exhaust gas. The heat converts it to ammonia, which is required for the chemical reaction that takes place in the ceramic catalytic converter. Here a chemical-catalytic reaction converts the toxic nitrogen oxide into two harmless substances, nitrogen and water. As a result the Mercedes-Benz engine meets the Euro 5 standard that will be required from 2009, which stipulates a further 43% reduction in nitrogen oxide in exhaust gas from the current Euro 4 guideline. The engine achieves the EEV exhaust emissions level by using an additional particulate filter. Diesel engines which meet the EEV emissions standard are currently considered the cleanest in the world. Although the statutory limits set by the Euro 5 emissions guideline will not go into effect until September 2009, Mercedes-Benz has for some time been offering the option of equipping buses to meet the EEV emissions standard. By way of comparison, the Mercedes-Benz EEV engine reduces particulate emissions by a further 75% compared with a Mercedes-Benz Euro 5 engine, which is already quite clean.

The 17 Citaro buses will provide service in future on behalf of the Stadtverkehr Euskirchen (SVE) in the company colours of yellow and blue. The SVE operates the city's bus network with 11 lines and around 300 stops along with 6 school bus lines. The number of passengers was 600,000 in 1996, the year the SVE was established, and the figure is now reaching its highest level of almost 5 million.