SWITCH Mobility Unveils Eiv9 Electric Bus At Prawaas 5.0

SWITCH Mobility Ltd unveiled its new 9-metre electric bus, the EiV9, at Prawaas 5.0 in Gandhinagar on Thursday, positioning the vehicle for city transit, employee transportation and school mobility as fleet operators across India accelerate their shift to electric fleets.

The EiV9 is built by SWITCH, part of the Hinduja Group and drawing on engineering expertise from Ashok Leyland, on a platform aimed squarely at total cost of ownership rather than upfront price alone — the metric that increasingly decides fleet-procurement contracts in India's bus segment. The bus is powered by a Permanent Magnet Variable Reluctance motor delivering up to 213 kW of peak power, paired with multiple battery pack options that let operators size the vehicle to specific routes and duty cycles. Regenerative braking and dual-gun CCS2 fast charging are intended to keep vehicles in service longer, a key concern for operators running tight urban schedules.

Passenger-facing features include full front and rear air suspension, ergonomic seating and individual USB charging points, with a pushback seating configuration available for staff transport applications. On safety, the bus carries a fire detection and suppression system along with disc brakes on both axles.

"We see strong momentum in this category, with the 9m electric bus market expected to grow at a CAGR of nearly 34 per cent by FY30," said Ganesh Mani, chief executive of SWITCH Mobility, at the launch. "The EiV9 has been purpose-built to deliver what operators value most: higher efficiency, superior passenger comfort, advanced safety and lower operating costs."

Alongside the EiV9, SWITCH showcased an upgraded EiV12 Intercity bus for long-distance travel, featuring floor-mounted LFP batteries for a lower centre of gravity, reclining seats with per-seat charging points, and dual-gun DC fast charging. The Intercity variant also runs SWITCH iON, the company's connected-vehicle platform for remote diagnostics and battery management, and adds camera-based digital rear-view mirrors alongside a pneumatic driver's seat.
The company used the exhibition to launch #SwitchKaro, a campaign encouraging fleet owners and transport operators to move to electric mobility, framing the switch as a business decision as much as an environmental one.

SWITCH Mobility says it has put more than 2,400 electric buses on Indian and international roads, covering over 150 million kilometres, alongside more than 2,500 electric light commercial vehicles under its IeV range. The launch comes as state transport undertakings and private operators expand electric bus procurement, with total cost of ownership, charging infrastructure and battery configuration emerging as the deciding factors for large-scale fleet transitions in the country's public transport sector.

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