The California Air Resources Board (CARB) awarded funding to the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District (SJVAPCD) to deploy 15 Proterra Catalyst® buses, 11 Proterra depot-chargers, and four Proterra fast-chargers to improve local air quality and public health in disadvantaged communities throughout the San Joaquin Valley.

Proterra will deploy its buses and charging stations throughout the Valley, including the City of Visalia Transit Division, Fresno County Rural Transit Agency, California State University Fresno, San Joaquin Regional Transit District, and the City of Modesto Transit Services.

“In the last 22 years, we have implemented voluntary incentive programs that have resulted in more than 134,000 tons of emission reductions...We expect this program will eliminate 1.592 tons per year of weighted criteria pollutants,” said Samir Sheikh, deputy air pollution control officer, SJVAPCD.

CARB’s investment from the highly competitive Zero-Emission Truck and Bus Pilot Program will create advanced technology hubs and provide direct economic, environmental, and public health benefits to disadvantaged Valley communities while serving as a regional model that supports economies of scale in manufacturing, training, maintenance, and vehicle-to-grid integration. The Valley-wide electrification project will further help drive down vehicle costs and offer immediate opportunities for shared infrastructure, spare parts, and workforce training, according to officials.

Opportunities for technology transfer will also help drive additional deployments of zero-emission heavy-duty vehicle technologies throughout California and North America.

Proterra will manufacture the buses and charging infrastructure at its newest facility in Southern California, which was partially funded by the California Energy Commission. Proterra’s City of Industry manufacturing facility was built to meet the growing demand for zero-emission buses throughout the Western U.S., and will ensure close collaboration and ease of maintenance for San Joaquin Valley communities during the 12-year-vehicle lifespan.  

“Faced with climbing populations and increased socioeconomic stratification, urban ecosystems are being pressured to renovate their transportation networks to meet the needs of all residents — marginalizing none and prioritizing all,” said Ryan Popple, CEO of Proterra. “We are pleased to be working with the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District on democratizing electric mobility, bringing state-of-the-art technology to the residents of the Central Valley.”