Mexico’s First Electric Bus: Taruk Debuts

Guadalajara, Mexico — With the new electric bus named Taruk, a vehicle entirely developed and manufactured in Mexico, the country is making a bid for sustainability and technological independence. The unit was presented at the Expo Transporte ANPACT 2025 in Guadalajara, Jalisco, several days ago.

Faced with the eventual phasing out of diesel-powered urban buses in Mexico, having a zero-emission vehicle powered by clean energy gives the country the possibility of not depending on other suppliers to renew its fleet, explained Roberto Gottfried, general director of MegaFlux, the company that developed the bus, in a statement to EFE on Friday.

"It has a very high level of, let's say, sovereignty, this bus because to a great extent it does not depend on us being able to bring something from outside or that they sell us a component to be able to assemble and build it," he explained.

He added that the bus, baptized as 'Taruk'—which means roadrunner in the indigenous Yaqui language—was made with national patents, all its components are made in Mexico, in addition to the software, licenses, and engineering that manage it being the property of the Mexican company that created it.

"That it is self-managed, that it is a topic decided by Mexicans, manufactured by Mexicans, thinking about the well-being of other Mexicans and understanding that attending to the well-being of the Mexican population is a great business and a great engine of the economy," he expressed.

Energy Autonomy

The bus can operate in both cities and coastal areas with air conditioning and clean energy, with zero emissions on high-kilometer public transport routes with up to 350 kilometers of daily energy autonomy, equivalent to a typical workday.

"It is equipped for warm climates, it has central air conditioning and a few adjustments were made, since these will operate in saline environments. It has the same 287-kilowatt battery, 350 kilometers of autonomy without air conditioning, with air conditioning 250 kilometers if the air conditioning is on for more than 12 hours," he detailed.

Gottfried detailed that 'Taruk' has a capacity for 60 people, is adapted for people with disabilities, and maintains its energy autonomy in cases of high demand with up to a hundred passengers. Furthermore, it is cheaper than a diesel one.

"The viability of this bus comes from its low operating cost. In over 40,000 kilometers traveled with the first Taruk, what we saw is that the operating cost is between seven and eight and a half times lower than that of diesel," he stated.

The first version of this bus circulated in 12 Mexican cities and the company is in negotiations to deploy 800 units in 18 cities over the next 10 months.

Specifically, Gottfried indicated that they will soon begin operating 66 units in Chetumal, Quintana Roo, in the southeast of the country, where authorities will also create a charging station with photovoltaic panels and storage batteries to initiate a clean energy system that can impact the local economy.

The shift to electricity addresses the problem of pollution generated by fleets of obsolete buses with an average age of 18 years and constant burning of diesel, which will have to be replaced in the short term.

"Mexico and Brazil are going to pass laws so that after 2040 the sale of diesel vehicles is prohibited, so it is extremely relevant. (…) Electricity is made. It is an investment opportunity for someone who wants to supply electricity to a transport system," he concluded.