'Backward' bus just the ticket

Is it coming or going? It's difficult to tell as this 'push-me pull-you' bus looks exactly the same going forwards as backwards

Auto Express Car Reviews

Novel new bus can be driven from either end

05th January 2007

Vehicle designers are perfecting the extra-long bendy bus with a cab at each end so that it can be driven in either direction without having to turn around.


	An extra section can also be slotted into the middle to accommodate even more passengers and make the AutoTram one of the longest vehicles on the road

Dubbed AutoTram by its German designers, the bus is a vision of public transport for the future. With diesel engines at both ends, the AutoTram can even divide in half to serve side routes along smaller roads. The two halves then rejoin for main routes to create a single 24-metre long bus.

An extra section can also be slotted into the middle to accommodate even more passengers and make the AutoTram one of the longest vehicles on the road, at a massive 36 metres. All of the bus's axles are steerable to help it negotiate tight bends, while hi-tech CCTV and sat-nav systems help the driver pilot the extra-long vehicle around corners.

To boost its green credentials, each section of the AutoTram comes with a flywheel underneath which is designed to absorb some of the braking energy. Then if the engines fail, a fully charged flywheel can power the bus for up to two kilometres.

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