FRANKFURT - A pilot programme has shown hydrogen-powered city buses work well without polluting the environment, the European Commission said on Thursday, extending its push to promote emission-free vehicles.
Twenty-seven public buses running in nine European cities since mid-2003 have carried more than 4 million people and clocked up more than 1 million km without incident, it noted.
"The question is no longer whether this technology works, but when will it be competitive," EU Energy Commissioner Andris Piebalgs said in a statement.
A new 105-million-euro (US$134 million) project will track the performance of around 200 hydrogen-powered vehicles and the infrastructure needed to keep them running.
The EU will contribute 48 million euros to the public-private programme that will put hydrogen-powered buses, cars, scooters and even wheelchairs to work on three continents.
German carmaker DaimlerChrysler is at the forefront in hydrogen technology, currently testing vehicles out in the field.
REUTERS NEWS SERVICE
