Houston starts introducing electric bus fleet
The ’28 OST – Wayside’ now has five electric buses running on the line running between Ben Taub Hospital and the Denver Harbor Transit Center. While Metro already operates more than 400 diesel-electric hybrid buses, a Federal Transit Administration (FTA) grant will ensure the agency has 20 electric buses and 14 hydrogen fuel cell electric buses in total in the coming years.
“The new electric buses meet our broader goals of ensuring the system is accessible, equitable, and helps us close environmental justice gaps,” said METRO Board Chair Elizabeth Gonzalez Brock. “Both routes service some communities that include minority, low-income, and transit-dependent populations. It is so important we provide these customers with an easy and safe choice that they will be excited to ride.”
This is not the end of the public transport operator’s electrification plans, as Metro writes on its website: “While METRO already operates more than 400 clean-running diesel-electric hybrid buses, a Federal Transit Administration (FTA) grant will ensure the agency has 20 electric buses and 14 hydrogen fuel cell electric buses in total in the coming years.”
While the communication does not specify which bus models are on the road, the electric buses present in the fleet come from Nova Bus and were ordered as a fleet of 20 buses in early 2022 with the option to double the order later. Nova Bus’s battery-electric LFSe+ buses have up to a 564 kWh battery and a range between 211 and 292 miles, while offering space for up to 68 passengers. The city of Houston has also started electrifying its city fleet, purchasing 97 battery-electric vehicles for the City Council in the same year. The purchased electric vehicles were to be deployed throughout the City departments, including the police and fire departments.
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