Brampton’s electric buses officially on the roads

To reduce the city's emissions

Bramptoguardian.com
May 4, 2021
Clarrie Feinstein

Brampton’s battery electric buses will be operational starting May 4 on Route 26 Mount Pleasant, followed by Route 23 Sandalwood.

According to the City, this will be the largest single global deployment to date of standardized and fully interoperable electric buses and high-powered overhead on-route charging systems, as part of the pan-Canadian Battery Electric Bus (BEB) Demonstration and Integration Trial.

The project was first launched in 2017 by the Canadian Urban Transit Research & Innovation Consortium (CUTRIC), allowing vehicles and chargers from different manufacturers to be used in interoperable form, meaning they can plug into one another’s charging infrastructure to gain a charge.

Brampton joins TransLink and York Region Transit in this “global-first” initiative with Nova Bus, New Flyer Industries, ABB Inc., Siemens Canada, and Newmarket-Tay Power Distribution Ltd.

“I am excited to announce the launch of electric buses on Brampton’s roads starting May 4. Brampton is a Green City, and this is a significant milestone in sustainability for our community,” Mayor Patrick Brown said in a statement. “We are proud to collaborate with CUTRIC, our project partners and leaders in innovation for the pan-Canadian BEB Demonstration and Integration Trial in Brampton. This project is a global first, and will further enhance our transit network, which is one of the fastest-growing in Canada.”

The release notes that Brampton’s deployment differs from other cities where buses can only charge at designated charging depots. But Brampton’s depot and on-road charging options allow for an increase in daily travel ranges on the electric buses.

The electric buses support zero tailpipe emissions and reduce pollution. The buses will also achieve near-zero emissions in their life cycle -- a decrease in emissions from diesel equivalents. Each bus can charge completely in less than 10 minutes.

In 2019, Catherine McKenna, then Minister of Environment and Climate Change, announced $11.15 million toward the first phase of the pilot project, which will cost an estimated $16 million in total. Federal funding was provided through Environment and Climate Change Canada’s Low Carbon Economy Fund and Natural Resources Canada’s Green Infrastructure - Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Demonstration Program.

Brampton Transit currently operates 450 buses in its fleet, including 133 diesel-electric hybrid Züm bus rapid transit buses.