DOT Offers nearly $25 Million for More Zero-Emission Buses

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) on January nine announced that its Federal Transit Administration (FTA) is making $24.9 million accessible through its new Low- or No-Emission Vehicle Deployment Plan that will put a new generation of advanced, non-polluting transit buses on the road in communities nationwide. The funds are intended to encourage more widespread adoption of reliable "green energy" buses into transit fleets.

FTA will award the funds on a competitive basis to transit agencies and state transportation departments working either independently or jointly with bus manufacturers that are already making low- and zero-emission buses. The Plan builds on the success of FTA's National Fuel Cell Bus Program, which invested in the research, development, and testing of alternative fuels and related equipment, such as electric charging stations, for the transit industry. This Plan successfully committed $90 million over 7 years for innovative research, demonstration, and deployment plans to reduce the cost of fuel cells for transit use.

In addition to their environmental benefits, LoNo transit buses will, in the long run, help transit agencies save money on fuel and maintenance costs. According to the Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory, zero-emission buses can achieve in excess of double the fuel economy of buses running on diesel and other fuels. See the DOT press release.

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