Wrightbus fuel cell buses are ready for deployment in Cologne, within a 130-units RVK H2 fleet

Cologne region operator RVK is deploying Wrightbus-made fuel cell buses for the first time in continental Europe. 31 hydrogen buses have been delivered and are now going in operation, following acquisition allowed by funding from the Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport (BMDV). This was announced in a press note by RVK released in late December 2024.

In May 2022 Wrightbus had secured an order from RVK Cologne for 20 fixed and 40 optional hydrogen buses. Delivery of 31 units was completed in late November 2024.

In October, Wrightbus also signed a deal worth up to half-a-billion pounds to supply more than 1,000 buses to operator Go-Ahead over the next three years – 90 per cent of which will be zero-emission.

Wrightbus buses in Cologne

Wrightbus Kite Hydroliner FCEV buses have been trialled on several routes and will soon be used on regular routes and in various regions, RVK states. The trial operation serves, among other things, to analyse on which routes the buses can exploit their greatest potential.

Marcel Frank, Managing Director of Regionalverkehr Köln GmbH, states: “In addition to the continuous expansion of our climate-neutral fleet, we always want to break new ground and diversify with buses from different manufacturers. By awarding the contract to Wrightbus, we are consciously focusing on a new model that will further improve our fleet with its advantages”.

RVK’s hydrogen bus fleet now comprises 130 vehicles, and this makes it the largest fuel cell bus fleet in Europe. Including the vehicles already delivered and those still to come as part of the subsidy programme, the number will reach over 160 hydrogen buses by the end of 2025. Regionalverkehr Köln GmbH already operates the largest fleet of hydrogen-powered buses.