The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) has received its first zero emission electric bus that will be used on the Orange Line later this year.
The 60-foot articulated bus is manufactured by New Flyer and uses state-of-the-art technologies. It is the first of 40 electric buses from New Flyer that will be arriving over the next year.
“Metro continues to seek ways to be reduce emissions and help improve our region’s air quality,” said James Butts, mayor of Inglewood and the chair of the Metro Board of Directors. “These zero-emission buses that will provide reliable service while also reducing the agency’s carbon footprint. This is a win-win for our riders, our communities and the environment.”
The Orange Line will be the first line to receive these electric buses with a total of 40 buses to be delivered to the agency and deployed on the Orange Line by the fall of 2020.
The electric buses cost $1.15 million each in a contract valued at $80,003,282. This contract includes the deployment of the electric buses and associated charging infrastructure. The new buses will be capable of being recharged at various points along the Orange Line to support its 24/7 operation.
“We are excited to begin operating electric buses as part of Metro’s bus fleet and look forward to achieving our goal of converting the Orange Line to all electric buses in 2020,” said Metro CEO Phillip Washington. “As we continue our transportation revolution, we must continue to make sustainable practices the norm.”
The Metro Board in 2017 unanimously adopted a motion endorsing a comprehensive plan to transition the agency to a 100 percent zero emission bus fleet by 2030. The plan is contingent upon two primary factors: continuous advancements in electric bus technology – which includes an increase in range, reduction of charging times and extension of battery life cycles – as well as a drop in price as the technology develops. Metro is the largest American transportation agency to endorse such a goal.
In a separate purchase, Metro ordered an additional 65 zero emission electric buses from the manufacturer BYD with five of those buses being 60-foot articulated buses earmarked for the Orange Line and the remainder to be used on the Silver Line that operates between the El Monte Bus Station and the Harbor Gateway Transit Center in Gardena. Metro plans to convert the Silver Line to zero emission buses in 2021.
