Focus on Sustainability
Climate change is an urgent reality. In response, the City has set a municipal goal of using 100 percent renewable energy sources and becoming carbon neutral by the year 2030.
Metro Transit accounts for a significant portion of all the carbon City vehicles emit.
Metro is currently testing the use of three all-electric buses and plans to start converting a large portion of its fleet to electric vehicles in the coming years. A majority of Metro’s articulated bus rapid transit (BRT) vehicles will be all electric.
With each of Metro’s current buses using approximately 5,658 gallons diesel each year, electric buses are expected to conserve nearly a quarter million gallons of fuel yearly as well as save the City up to $125,000 in maintenance costs per vehicle during the lifetime of each bus.
In addition to fuel savings, electric buses release zero emissions back into the atmosphere with each one saving up to 135 metric tons of greenhouse gas (GHG) annually.
Metro's New Electric Buses
Metro is testing three Proterra electric buses that can operate up to 350 miles on a single charge. The power/fuel cost to operate a Proterra bus is $0.16 per mile compared to $0.63 per mile for Metro’s hybrid electric buses, $0.74 per mile for compressed natural gas vehicles, and $0.84 per mile for standard diesel buses.
In addition to zero emissions and outstanding fuel economy, these buses create little to no noise when idling.
In motion, they operate at a noise level that is measured below that of a normal conversation. It is also expected that these vehicles will carry a much lower maintenance cost than standard diesel buses.
