Electric commercial vehicle startup Arrival has been granted EU certification and received European Whole Vehicle Type Approval (EUWVTA) for its Bus model.
This is a major milestone for the company and it represents a critical step towards Arrival Buses carrying passengers on public roads in Europe and the United Kingdom. The certification has been granted after the Arrival Bus successfully completed all required system safety testing.
"This key milestone for Arrival is a testimony to our innovative technologies and our unique new method of design and production of electric vehicles. The Arrival Bus is different from any that has come before, employing technologies developed in-house to create benefits for operators, passengers, and the planet."
Denis Sverdlov, Founder and CEO at Arrival
Since the Arrival Bus shares technologies and components with the Arrival Van and Arrival Car, learnings from the certification contribute to all vehicle programs. The startup says this is one of the many benefits of its unique approach to the design of its electric vehicles.
Gallery: Arrival Bus
The Arrival Bus has been developed to meet the needs of cities across the world looking to transition their public transportation infrastructure into a sustainable ecosystem. The vehicle features flexible passenger seating capacity across the entire flat floor, improving comfort and creating more standing space.
The Bus also includes wrap-around exterior and interior screens, adaptable lighting, a transparent roof, and a suite of digital features. Arrival's software ecosystem enables full connectivity, digital customization, and deep access to vehicle behavior and data.
The UK-based startup plans to build all its products in rapidly-scalable and highly automated local microfactories, where multitasking robots will do most of the manufacturing work. Since setting up a microfactory costs a lot less than a traditional assembly plant and employs far fewer people, Arrival says this method should result in significantly cheaper products than other comparable electric vehicles and even today's diesel-powered vehicles.
That remains to be seen as Arrival hasn't announced prices for its products yet and hasn't even started production. The company started trials of the Bus at a testing facility in the UK in late 2021 and was expected to begin public road trials in UK transport operator First Bus in the first quarter of 2022.
Production of the Arrival Bus is expected to commence in the second quarter of this year.
