Placer County to purchase 16 transit buses
The Placer County, Calif., Board of Supervisors approved the purchase of 16 buses, including four electric buses for the Truckee-Tahoe region. The buses will enhance service reliability, reduce vehicle emissions, increase fleet sustainability and support continued service growth across Placer County Transit (PCT) and Tahoe Truckee Area Regional Transit (TART).
Placer’s Department of Public Works operates a total of 45 buses between PCT and TART. Placer County says those buses must be replaced as they exceed their useful life and become expensive to maintain. Since 2015, the county has replaced 39 buses for both systems, all of which had reached their useful life, and purchased one expansion bus for TART.
The approval from the board will replace 14 additional buses and expand the PCT Dial-A-Ride fleet. The new buses will cost approximately $12.7 million and allow for the following fleet additions:
PCT – Dial-A-Ride Service
- Four 25-foot transit buses replacing model years 2008–2015
- Two 25-foot transit buses for fleet expansion
PCT – Fixed Route Service
Four 35-foot transit buses replacing 2015 model year vehicles
TART – Fixed Route Service
- Two 40-foot compressed natural gas transit buses replacing model years 2009–2015
- Four 40-foot battery-electric transit buses replacing model years 2015–2017
“These replacements will improve service quality and operational efficiency while advancing the county’s transition toward cleaner, lower-emission vehicles,” said Placer County Transit Manager Jaime Wright. “TART’s purchase of four electric buses will be a part of a pilot program to be completed in the Truckee and North Tahoe region to determine the viability of a fully electric fleet.”
The California Air Resources Board initiated the Innovative Clean Transit Regulation in 2018, requiring transit agencies to reduce emissions and transition to zero-emission buses. Beginning in 2026, Placer County notes this regulation requires 25% of its new bus purchases to be zero-emission buses before moving to 100% by 2029.
The bus purchases are fully funded with no impact on the county’s general fund. Funding is provided from federal grants, Senate Bill (SB) 1, the local transportation fund, SB 125, the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement Program, as well as an affordable housing grant from the creation of the Meadow View Affordable Housing project in Martis Valley.
The board also approved two budget amendments for the coming fiscal year to increase PCT’s budget by $1.6 million and increase TART’s budget by $8.1 million.