New York, London, & Sydney Add Electric Buses To Their Public Transit Fleets

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Electric buses continue to be the preferred choice of public transportation agencies around the globe. (Even Moscow has 1,000 of them!) According to Electrive, authorities in New York, London, and Sydney are adding more of them to their public transit fleets. And why not? They are quiet and emissions free — two qualities that may not have direct monetary advantages, but are important to riders and city residents. Electric buses also reduce maintenance and fuel costs, which gives them an economic advantage as well.

60 New Flyer Electric Buses For NYC

New York City has ordered another 60 electric buses from New Flyer of America to add to the 15 already delivered to the city. The Xcelsior Charge NG buses are 12-meter long, 39-seat models fitted with 525 kWh battery packs — the largest available from New Flyer. The Metropolitan Transit Authority says, when fitted with these larger battery packs, the buses will be able to complete their normal daily runs without recharging. New Flyer says the buses will be equipped with a new lightweight electric traction drive system that can recover up to 90% of the electricity used during regenerative braking.

“For more than 25 years, we delivered over 2,990 buses and 1,170 coaches to the MTA,” says Chris Stoddart, president of North American Bus and Coach. “With these additional high performance, zero emission Xcelsior CHARGE NG buses, we are expanding sustainable mobility in New York City and the surrounding boroughs and delivering cleaner air through immediate greenhouse gas reductions. Together with the MTA, we are building more livable, sustainable communities in the New York region.”

The MTA serves an estimated 8.5 million citizens and more than 60 million visitors with 678 million bus trips per year and is one of 7 transit agencies in New York State to purchase zero emission buses from New Flyer.

29 Electric Double-Decker Buses For London

BYD-ADL has delivered 29 more of its Enviro400EV to Transport for London.  The iconic red double-decker buses are in keeping with what people are used to seeing on the city’s streets. The new buses will service TfL Route 63 between King’s Cross and Honor Oak.

Louise Cheeseman, director of buses for TfL, says, “As we recover from the pandemic it’s vital that our bus network stays relevant and remains an appealing option. Continuing our dependency on cars, especially for journeys that could easily be made by bus, would be catastrophic for our health and the environment. An ongoing investment pipeline into the capital’s zero emission buses is not only essential to keep London moving in a sustainable way, it is crucial in supporting green jobs across the UK.”

BYD-ADL is a partnership between ADL — a UK-born subsidiary of US bus manufacturer NFI Group — and BYD. The buses are equipped with BYD Iron-Phosphate Battery technology which BYD-ADL says enables a longer driving range and optimized battery life. The Chinese company also provides the electric bus chassis, incorporating a ‘6 in one controller’ which the company says integrates the entire ecosystem of the bus for improved reliability.

Louise Cheeseman adds, “We have made significant progress in developing zero-emission buses and with bus safety over the last few years, leading the way for the rest of the UK. Ultimately any evolution of the bus in the capital is focused on the customer. These brand new buses on route 63 show our ambition to enhance the customer offer, bringing together for the first time a suite of new features that improve everything from comfort to journey speeds, and make buses the obvious choice over the car.”

79 Electric Buses For Sydney

The vehicle manufacturing industry in Australia has been largely moribund since Ford and GM closed their operations Down Under a few years ago. Today, most of the cars, trucks, and buses sold in the country are manufactured in other countries.

New South Wales is planning to change that by encouraging local manufacturers to build electric buses there. Custom Denning, a commercial vehicle manufacturer, has a factory in St. Mary’s, a community west of the city. It has just been awarded a $70 million contract to design, manufacture, and assemble 79 new electric buses for use in the suburbs west of Sydney proper.

The money is being provided by the government of New South Wales as part of its plan to transition the NSW bus fleet to zero emissions vehicles while creating local manufacturing jobs for the local economy. NSW announced in 2019 that it intends to replace all of its 8,000+ buses with zero emissions alternatives,  Chip in a few dollars a month to help support independent cleantech coverage that helps to accelerate the cleantech revolution!

David Elliott, minister for transport and veterans, says the $70 million investment should help drive a post-pandemic jobs recovery and boost local manufacturing. As a result of the Custom Denning order, other Australian bus manufacturers such as BusTech and Nexport to design and build electric buses in New South Wales. The 79 coming from Custom Denning leaves 7,921 others to be sourced from somewhere over the next few years. David Elliott  adds, “I’m committed to exploring opportunities to secure more local manufacturing, component supply and workforce skills development to boost our economy.”

The Takeaway

The electric bus contract in New South Wales adds another reason to transition to electric vehicles — boosting employment in local economies. Going green is good for business, as several recent articles on CleanTechnica have pointed out. Those who say going green will destroy local economies are fear mongers. The EV revolution is a job creator. Embrace it!


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Steve Hanley

Steve writes about the interface between technology and sustainability from his home in Florida or anywhere else The Force may lead him. He is proud to be "woke" and doesn't really give a damn why the glass broke. He believes passionately in what Socrates said 3000 years ago: "The secret to change is to focus all of your energy not on fighting the old but on building the new." You can follow him on Substack and LinkedIn but not on Fakebook or any social media platforms controlled by narcissistic yahoos.

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