Miami-Dade County rolls out latest electric bus; launches bus stop improvement program

Feb. 10, 2023

The new electric bus supports the county’s sustainability goals, while the bus stop improvement program supports its efforts to improve customer experience on the Miami-Dade Transit system.

Mischa Wanek-Libman

DTPW Director and CEO Eulois Cleckley with Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, left, at an event launching a bus stop improvement initiative and introducing the county's newest electric bus.

Officials from Miami-Dade County celebrated its latest electric bus to enter service and to kick off an anticipated program to improve bus stops at a Feb. 2 event help at the Stephen P. Clark Center.

The event began after Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, Miami-Dade County Commissioner Eileen Higgins and Department of Transportation and Public Works (DTPW) Director and CEO Eulois Cleckley arrived via the new 40-foot Proterra electric bus.

“Along with safe neighborhoods, quality housing and good jobs, everyone deserves a reliable transportation network that gets them where they need to go,” said Mayor Levine Cava. “We’re fast tracking our work to build key transit corridors to connect every neighborhood in our county…we want you to live more and drive less.”

The new bus is the one of 40 electric vehicles now in service throughout the county. It is also one of 75 the county ordered from Proterra first in 2019, with an order of 33 vehicles followed in 2021 by an additional 42 buses. The company also supplied 75 chargers that Miami-Dade County has installed at three depots.

The county has received 64 of the 75 ordered vehicles. Once the entire order is put into service, electric buses will represent 10 percent of DTPW’s fleet. Mayor Levine Cava noted the buses were manufactured at Proterra’s Greenville, S.C., plant and represent an investment in the future, environment and safety of Miami-Dade County.

The county’s growing transit fleet will also be stopping at more modern bus stops with the launch of the Bus Passenger Shelter Program. The Stephen P. Clark Center where the Feb. 2 event was held is the location of the first new shelter. The program includes the installation new bus shelters, trash containers, bicycle racks, improved pedestrian accessibility to and from bus shelters and a complete renovation of the existing bus passenger shelter inventory installed within Miami-Dade County's Metrobus service area.

Cleckley explained the program ensures bus shelters are maintained, safe, clean and appealing for all users. He said overall ridership has recovered to 86 percent of pre-COVID levels, but Metrobus, which serves 70 percent of the entire DTPW system, has ridership that has returned fully to pre-pandemic levels.

About the Author

Mischa Wanek-Libman | Editor in Chief

Mischa Wanek-Libman serves as editor in chief of Mass Transit magazine. She is responsible for developing and maintaining the magazine’s editorial direction and is based in the western suburbs of Chicago.

Wanek-Libman has spent more than 20 years covering transportation issues including construction projects and engineering challenges for various commuter railroads and transit agencies. She has been recognized for editorial excellence through her individual work, as well as for collaborative content.

She is an active member of the American Public Transportation Association's Marketing and Communications Committee and serves as a Board Observer on the National Railroad Construction and Maintenance Association (NRC) Board of Directors.

She is a graduate of Drake University, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism and Mass Communication with a major in magazine journalism and a minor in business management.