World first: a solution to reduce air pollution tested by Transdev, Tallano et IVECO BUS
Press Release – Issy-Les-Moulineaux, April 30, 2024 – JOSEPH PROJECT
Transdev, Tallano Technologies and IVECO BUS are joining forces to test TAMIC® , a system for recovering fine particles emitted during bus braking. Full-scale tests will start in the second half of 2024 on an urban transport network operated by Transdev.
Tallano Technologies is participating alongside Transdev, Soléa, Mulhouse Alsace Agglomération, and IVECO BUS in a collaborative project under the Propulse program of the French Transport Innovation Agency (AIT). This program, which is handled by the Ministry of Transport, aims to select and support innovative mobility projects toward pre-industrialization, focusing on strong impacts in terms of energy and environmental transition.
Studies and tests of this system reducing pollution are currently underway in preparation for a real-world trial scheduled for autumn 2024.
On Wednesday, February 28, the AIT officially selected the Joseph project—led by Soléa (Transdev’s local subsidiary), Transdev (fleet operator), IVECO (bus manufacturer), and Tallano (technology provider)—as a winner of the 3rd edition of the Propulse Program.
The project involves initially equipping three IVECO BUS vehicles currently in operation in Mulhouse with the TAMIC® system, followed by the retrofitting of 50 additional buses as part of an air quality improvement program managed by the Mulhouse Alsace Agglomération.
European legislation provides a framework for environmental standards on emissions from internal combustion engines. By 2030, it will be complemented by a new component addressing “non-exhaust” particle emissions—those originating notably from braking systems. The innovation developed and tested by Transdev, Tallano Technologies, and IVECO BUS aims to offer a solution that will meet these future requirements.
According to ADEME (the French Agency for Ecological Transition, article in French), while exhaust emissions from internal combustion engines have decreased thanks to the widespread adoption of particulate filters, emissions from brake wear (as well as from tires and road surfaces) are becoming increasingly significant.
These emissions may represent a risk to public health. From an environmental perspective, rainwater washing over asphalt surfaces in urban areas carries runoff laden with microparticles of rubber and metallic, chlorinated, and sulfur-containing elements—mainly originating from brake, tire, and road surface abrasion—into the wastewater systems.
The ambition of the project
The tests conducted in 2024, representing a world first, will pave the way for new milestones, such as the certification of the depollution system once standards are established, and the industrial development of the solution. The strength of the brake particle capture system, based on Tallano’s technology and implemented by Transdev and IVECO BUS, lies in its ability to be integrated both into new vehicles and retrofitted onto buses already in operation.
