London Transit green lights plan for electric bus fleet
It’s the beginning of the end for London Transit’s fleet of noisy, carbon-belching diesel buses.
On Wednesday, the London Transit Commission (LTC) unanimously backed a consultant’s report that recommends a path to gradually transition its fleet to zero-emission electric buses over the coming years.
According to computer modelling performed by the Canadian Urban Transit Research and Innovation Consortium (CUTRIC), a combination of depot-based charging stations and so-called opportunity charging stations located along routes would support 99 per cent of local service on current routes with battery electric buses.
Despite costing about double the price of a traditional diesel bus, CUTRIC’s analysis shows that lower operating costs and environmental benefits justify an initial investment in electrification.
“An expansion fleet of 10 [electric] buses,” explained Kelly Paleczny, general manager of London Transit. “We’re also looking at both depot chargers and opportunity chargers.”
CUTRIC data comparing diesel, battery electric buses (BEB) and hydrogen fuel cell buses (FCEB). (Source: London Transit Commission)
After the purchase of the initial 10 buses, CUTRIC recommends that as existing buses reach their end of life, the LTC’s annual bus replacement program become the mechanism to replace 17 diesel buses each year with electric.
However, Paleczny recommends taking one year to evaluate the real world performance of the first buses before ordering more.
“We have those electric buses to learn from, but we [must] have backup [diesel] for those days when we have [technical] issues, which based on every transit system that’s ahead of where we are, there will be days where there are issues,” she explained.
London Transit will spend $80,000 to join with Burlington Transit as the first participants in a coalition of operators for a group-purchasing program.
The purchasing consortium aims to have the first contracts to purchase integrated systems of buses, charging stations and related equipment signed in March 2023.
Paleczny says given the delivery schedules of suppliers, the first electric buses could roll onto London streets in mid-2024.
“That gives us a year to get all of that other infrastructure complete. The Wonderland Road facility will need retrofits, London Hydro needs about a year advanced notice,” added Paleczny.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment which has been banned at Queen’s Park.
Mountain guide dies after falling into a crevasse in Banff National Park
A man who fell into a crevasse while leading a backcountry ski group deep in the Canadian Rockies has died.
2 teens charged in Halifax homicide: police
Two teenagers have been charged with second-degree murder in connection to an alleged homicide near the Halifax Shopping Centre earlier this week.
'Deep ignorance': Calls for Manitoba trustee to resign sparked after comments about Indigenous people and reconciliation
A rural Manitoba school trustee is facing calls to resign over comments he made about Indigenous people and residential schools earlier this week.
ByteDance prefers TikTok shutdown in U.S. if legal options fail, Reuters sources say
TikTok owner ByteDance would prefer to shut down its loss-making app rather than sell it if the Chinese company exhausts all legal options to fight legislation to ban the platform from app stores in the U.S., four sources said.
12-year-old hippo in Japan raised as a male discovered to be a female
When Gen-chan arrived at a zoo in Japan in 2017, no one questioned whether the then-five-year-old hippopotamus was a boy. Seven years later, zoo staff made a surprising discovery: Gen-chan, now 12, was female.
Here's why Harvey Weinstein's New York rape conviction was tossed and what happens next
Here's what you need to know about why movie mogul Harvey Weinstein's rape conviction was thrown out and what happens next.
Improve balance and build core strength with this exercise
When it comes to cardiovascular fitness, you may tend to focus on activities that move you forward, such as walking, running and cycling.
Legendary hockey broadcaster Bob Cole dies at 90: CBC
Bob Cole, a welcome voice for Canadian hockey fans for a half-century, has died at the age of 90. Cole died Wednesday night in St. John's, N.L., surrounded by his family, his daughter, Megan Cole, told the CBC.