Why not detach the horses from the bus?
Have stationary power stations, with horses on treadmills, which
charge battery packs.
Then the buses can show up, swap packs, and move on.
Removes a lot of weight the motor would otherwise be lugging.

On Sat, Oct 3, 2015 at 8:45 PM, Richard Aiken <xxxxxx@gmail.com> wrote:
> Some guy in Iran built a modern working prototype of such a vehicle, using
> an electric generator to turn the power of a horse walking on what is
> essentially an exercise treadmill into motive power for a (rather crude)
> automobile . . .
>
> http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2009/aug/17/horse-powered-car-iran
>
> It occurs to me that given an area with a lot of existing horse stables and
> a better design - one incorporating a lithium battery bank and/or a large
> flywheel (so the horses can keep a steady pace even while stopped at
> intersections and loading/unloading) - this could actually be a viable way
> to power a commuter bus. Of course, such a bus would need to be a
> double-decker, with the horses on the lower deck (in walk-through stalls
> perpendicular to the axis of movement) and passengers on the upper deck.
>
> But it would be doable. And you could even cover the horse level with those
> one-way paint schemes that some buses use, except reversed: this would let
> the horses be seen (to attract both ridership and increased viewership for
> the ads covering the passenger deck exterior) but keep *them* from seeing
> out and thus undisturbed by traffic.
>
> --
> Richard Aiken
>
> "Never insult anyone by accident."  Robert A. Heinlein
> "A word to the wise ain't necessary -- it's the stupid ones that need the
> advice." - Bill Cosby
> "We know a little about a lot of things; just enough to make us dangerous."
> Dean Winchester
>
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