Electric buses beneficial, but still far off

Group’s study details environmental pluses

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Swapping Pennsylvania’s diesel-fueled buses for electric versions would yield the same environmental benefits as removing more than 30,000 cars from the road, a new report says.

The study, released Thursday by statewide advocacy group PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center, suggests that ditching diesel buses would reduce greenhouse gas emissions and save taxpayer dollars. More than 20,000 school buses and 3,000 transit buses are currently on the road throughout the state.

“There’s no reason we should be running dirty, polluting buses in our communities and around our schools when we have better, cleaner options,” Ashleigh Deemer, the center’s Western Pennsylvania director, said in a statement.

The report recommends Pennsylvania use part of the $118 million settlement it received through Volkswagen’s emissions-cheating scandal. It also recommends using utility investments and state and federal grants to cover the cost of electric buses.

The report says the state should also create incentive programs for transit agencies, school districts and bus contractors to pay up-front costs of electric buses and charging stations.

“Major cities across the world have committed to protecting public health and the climate by transitioning to 100 percent all-electric buses,” Pittsburghers for Public Transit Executive Director Laura Wiens said in a statement. “Pittsburgh should make the same commitment.”

Locally, the Port Authority of Allegheny County could cut 23,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions each year if it transitioned its fleet of 727 transit buses to electric alternatives, according to the report.

The authority plans to have its first all-electric bus on the roads sometime next year, soon enough to test the vehicle before opening the proposed Bus Rapid Transit system in 2020. The proposed system, which would run between Downtown Pittsburgh and Oakland, would call for the agency to buy 25 electric articulated buses.

But a widespread shift to electric is probably a long shot for now. The buses are nearly three times as expensive — about $1.1 million per vehicle — than their diesel counterparts, and the technology is still developing, Port Authority spokesman Adam Brandolph said.