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Manchester bus shelters go solar

Posted: 10/04/2007

Bus shelters are to be revamped and fitted with solar-powered panels in order to improve passenger safety and energy efficiency. Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Authority (GMPTA) has agreed to spend £100,000 on 49 bus shelters. Roof-mounted solar panels will generate electricity during the day which is then stored in batteries to light up the bus shelter at night-time. The new shelters were first trialled at two bus stops last year.

The lights at the stop are activated by sensors and only come on when there is someone at the stop so that the stored energy is used as efficiently as possible. Councillor Andrew Fender, from GMPTA, said: "Solar-powered bus shelters might sound like an odd idea for an area of the country where is rains a lot but they don't need direct sunlight to be effective. "They work by storing up light during the day and then using it as power at night.

"Solar-powered systems are ideal for those sites which can't be easily connected to mains electricity. But as they're also good for the environment and cost-effective we want to see them used much more widely in the future."

The solar-power systems are expected to be in place at shelters later this year.
BBC News  
 

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