The Van Hool A300 is a city bus from the Belgian manufacturer Van Hool, the successor to the A500. It has two or three doors, a completely low floor and its engine mounted halfway along the bus. Over the years the type grew into a large family, from the short A300K and long A300L to articulated, hybrid, trolley and hydrogen versions.
Van Hool A300 at a glance
| Maker | Van Hool, Belgium |
|---|---|
| Type | city bus |
| Predecessor | Van Hool A500 |
| Layout | full low floor, engine mid-ship |
| Doors | two or three |
| Body versions | standard, short A300K, long A300L |
| Articulated versions | AG300, double articulated AGG300 |
| Alternative fuels | LPG/CNG, hybrid, trolley, hydrogen |
| New design | newA300 |
| Replaced by | Van Hool A12 |
| End of production | 2022 |
This article is based on one source, the Dutch Wikipedia article on the A300.
History of the Van Hool A300
The A300 followed the A500 in Van Hool’s city bus range. Its layout — a completely low floor, two or three doors and an engine placed halfway along the body — was kept through a long series of versions. Buses in the newer design were delivered as the newA300. Besides the standard diesel bus, Van Hool offered an LPG or CNG version (A300 CNG), an articulated AG300, a double-articulated AGG300, a hybrid (A300 Hyb), a trolleybus (A300 T), a short A300K, a lengthened A300L and hydrogen buses under the name A300L FuelCell. Production of the type ended completely in 2022, when it was replaced by the Van Hool A12.
For the American market Van Hool created a shortened and a lengthened version of the A300, coded A300K and A300L; the operators AC Transit and the DC Circulator ran these buses. A special Commuter Coach was also developed for America: the A300 formed the basis, with the rear bodywork of a touring coach, and the result was named Commuter C3045 with a length of 13.7 metres. Only one example was built, because an order for thirty from AC Transit was cancelled and development stopped.
Hybrid A300s entered service in the Netherlands in September 2009, when Connexxion put four hybrid buses to work for the province of South Holland, mainly on the city routes of Alphen aan den Rijn; twenty more followed for Leiden and Gouda. In December 2012 Arriva took the buses over after winning the Zuid-Holland Noord concession and used them on Leiden city services until 2019, after which three moved to North Brabant. In Belgium, De Lijn took five hybrid buses in 2009, used mainly in Leuven.
Van Hool also built hydrogen buses on the A300 family. The first, developed with AC Transit in 2004, was based on the A330; in 2007 the technology was adapted for Europe as the Fuel Cell Europa, and in 2009 a second version based on the A300L followed, used with AC Transit, VTA, SamTrans, Sonoma County and SF Muni. From early 2012 the Oslo operator Ruter ran five 13.2-metre hydrogen buses, among other things on line 81A to Vestbanen.
Design and features
- Full low floor: level access throughout the bus, with the engine mounted mid-ship.
- Two or three doors: the layout could be adapted to the operator’s route profile.
- Wide family: short, standard and long bodies plus articulated and double-articulated versions.
- Alternative drivetrains: LPG, CNG, hybrid, trolley and hydrogen versions were offered alongside the diesel bus.
- American derivatives: the A300K and A300L were created specifically for the United States.
Van Hool A300 versions
- A300: the standard two- or three-door city bus.
- newA300: buses in the newer Van Hool design.
- A300K and A300L: short and long versions for the American market.
- AG300 and AGG300: articulated and double-articulated members of the family.
- A300 Hyb and A300 T: hybrid and trolleybus versions.
- A300L FuelCell: hydrogen buses, the second generation based on the A300L.
The A300 succeeded the Van Hool A500 and shares its family with the articulated AG300. More buses are in the Van Hool collection.
Video: van hool a300 2813.
Video on YouTube.
Sources
- Van Hool A300, Dutch Wikipedia: versions, hybrid and hydrogen fleets, American models
