Adding to the tally of electric buses hitting the roads around the United States, the city of Spokane in the state of Washington just did its part (for now) by adding 12 new electric buses to its modest bus service.
The city of 220,000, located near the eastern border of Washington, ordered New Flyer Xcelsior CHARGE buses, 10 of them being 60-foot buses and 2 of them being 40-foot buses.
Spokane Transit CITY LINE electric bus. Photo courtesy of New Flyer.
Spokane Transit Authority provides about 10 million rides a year. Some of the fancy new electric buses will be used at the heart of that service, in a new 6-mile BRT (bus rapid transit) route that goes from downtown to Spokane Community College. In fact, the first bus to run that route will be one of the Xcelsior CHARGE buses.
This electric bus foray is part of Spokane Transit Authority’s current 10-year plan, STA Moving Forward, which includes an effort to green up the agency’s operations and begin the electrification process.
Spokane Transit CITY LINE electric bus. Photo courtesy of New Flyer.
Regarding other details of the buses themselves, “The high-capacity 60-foot buses are configured with five doors, New Flyer’s SmartRider™ smart suspension system, and interior bike racks for ease of passenger exit and entry. To date, New Flyer remains the only manufacturer offering five-door configurations,” New Flyer writes.
Spokane Transit CITY LINE electric bus. Photo courtesy of New Flyer.
We’ve written about a number of New Flyer electric bus orders, and in total, the company says that it has nearly 2,000 battery electric or fuel cell electric buses in operation in 80 cities around the world — in 4 different countries. Those buses have racked up 20 million miles of electric driving while in service.
For some more recent New Flyer news, see these stories:
- King County (Washington) To Get 120 Electric Buses
- New Flyer Xcelsior AV Is America’s First Autonomous Bus
- New Flyer Announces Improved Electric Bus, More Sales
- Two Transit Systems Increase Their Commitment To Electrification
- Allegheny County Adds 6 More Xcelsior CHARGE Electric Buses
- MARTA Orders 6 Xcelsior CHARGE Electric Buses
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