the world’s first elevated bus has taken its first test drive in china’s qinhuangdao, hebei province this week. the giant vehicle spans 22 meters long, nearly 8 meters wide, and reaches almost 5 meters above the tops of cars, soaring over traffic, decreasing gridlock, and speeding up ordinary vehicular travel. accommodating more than 300 passengers, the bus straddles the road, allowing personal vehicles to pass safely underneath.

 

 

world’s first transit elevated bus teb-1 debuts in qinhuangdao
video courtesy of descubre tu mundo

 

 

developed by TEB technology, the massive bus occupies two lanes and comprises two layers: the upper is used for carrying passengers, and the lower is hollow. vehicles under 2 meters in height can pass underneath, whether ‘TEB-1’ is moving or stopped — with speeds up to 60 km/h. powered by municipal electricity and a solar energy system, TEB can be suitable for both large and medium-sized cities. china’s xinhua news agency reports that the governments of brazil, france, india and indonesia have already expressed interest in TEB.

elevated bus
image courtesy of TEB / xinhua news agency

elevated bus
image courtesy of TEB / xinhua news agency

 

 

a scale model of the design first debuted at the china beijing international high-tech expo earlier this year:

designboom elevated bus 300

 

elevated bus debuts at beijing international high-tech expo
video courtesy of CCTV news