Google Gemini generated a panoramic illustration depicting the fragile "subsidy bubble" surrounding hydrogen pilots, contrasted with the grounded, scalable reality of the battery-electric market
The Liverpool City Region decision to convert its hydrogen bus fleet to battery electric operation was presented publicly as a response to changing market conditions. For observers who have followed hydrogen transport projects for more than a few years, it read less like a surprise and more like another entry … [continued]
ChatGPT generated panoramic image of a hydrogen station being serviced in winter, illustrating the fragility and maintenance burden seen in real-world pilots
Ottawa’s transit system is working through difficult choices at a moment when reliability, cost control, and public confidence matter more than ever. The fleet is aging, budgets are tight, and ridership is still recovering from the pandemic. Decisions made in the next two or three years will shape the quality … [continued]
Warsaw's MZA has added 50 electric buses from Solaris. Warsaw has one of the largest electric bus fleets in Europe. (Photo from MZA.)
My comparative review of eight Polish municipal projects purchasing hydrogen buses under the EU-funded Green Public Transport program reveals a systemic failure to apply the Energy Efficiency First (EE1st) principle. Seven out of eight cities skipped any energy or cost-efficiency comparison with battery-electric buses (BEVs), even though EU law explicitly … [continued]
ChatGPT generated. A stack of Horizon educational hydrogen kits arranged in bright primary colors, highlighting the playful branding that contrasts with the company’s industrial ambitions
Hyzon became a recognizable failure in the hydrogen for energy world, but its parent company, Horizon Fuel Cell, attracted much less attention. Hyzon’s collapse was visible because it entered public markets through a SPAC, made aggressive commercial claims, and then ran into regulatory, financial, and operational problems. Behind that story … [continued]
ChatGPT generated illustration representing the neutral techno-economic analysis that tipped Bayreuth toward electrification
Bayreuth, a pleasant Bavarian city of about 75,000 people, has become an unlikely symbol of learning in the hydrogen story. Two years ago, its municipal utility, Stadtwerke Bayreuth, announced a plan to decarbonize its bus fleet with hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. It looked like the future. The proposal included a … [continued]
ChatGPT generated humorous illustration depicting a "Greenwashing Station," satirically highlighting Halifax's hydrogen bus initiative, complete with attendants spraying green paint onto grey hydrogen tanks
Halifax’s just announced hydrogen-diesel hybrid bus trial is intended to be an ambitious stride forward in the city’s climate action plan and a trial that transit operators globally will gain insights from. Yet, scratching just below the surface reveals a problematic disconnect between optimistic projections and operational realities. The trial, … [continued]
ChatGPT generated panoramic image depicting two professionals standing next to a rusting, abandoned hydrogen-powered bus
In recent months I’ve assembled a long, long list of hydrogen bus trials that ended up with the transit agencies realizing what should have been obvious before they started: hydrogen buses are a lot more expensive and battery electric buses are much cheaper and more reliable. More come out of … [continued]
ChatGPT generated panoramic image of a group of people huddled shivering in a snow covered bus stop beside an out of service bus labeled "H2"
A sign of a great city is that the rich take public transit. Well, not really. They take light rail and subways. But they don’t take buses. In many cities, light rail systems attract a more affluent ridership compared to buses, highlighting a persistent disparity in public transit usage. Studies … [continued]
ChatGPT generated create a panoramic image of a bus filled with warm passengers driving along a frozen Canadian street
Every time I publish anything on electric buses — and I’ve published a lot on them recently — hydrogen bus fans point out that in the west, diesel heaters are often included in buses for winter time use. They say that as if the waste heat from fuel cells was … [continued]
ChatGPT generated panoramic image of a hydrogen bus with lots of representations of high CO2e emissions and a big warning sign about truth in advertising
In the middle of 2024, I documented the remarkable disappearance of claims of environmental virtue from the websites and social media of Canadian oil and gas companies and the lobbying groups they employed. Overnight, the degree of factual accuracy on their public sites went up by a remarkable amount. Why? … [continued]
