Passenger Bus, Rail and Motorcoach Industry News

UTC Power, formerly a subsidiary of United Technologies Corp., has long been considered a leader in fuel cell systems with decades of experience.

Customers on various routes may now experience a quieter and greener ride, powered by hydrogen, not diesel. This vehicle began carrying customers in January 2013.

The 40-foot bus has a capacity of 57 passengers and will be in service between six and eight hours daily on various RTA routes. The bus operates with nearly twice the fuel-efficiency as diesel-fueled bus, and is much quieter.

Manufactured by UTC Power of Connecticut, the fuel cell was installed in August and provides 400 kilowatts to the 333,000 square foot Hartford facility — 77% of the building's power. The system will also reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 827 metric tons.

Will provide 400 kilowatts of power to the agency’s 330,000-square-foot headquarters facility. Thermal energy from the fuel cell will be used to preheat two boilers that support the building's primary heating system.

The new model 40-foot Van Hool transit buses are lighter than the earlier generation fuel cell bus, which rolled out in 2007 and continues to operate on various routes in Greater Hartford, including the free downtown Star Shuttle route. Advanced lithium-ion battery systems and a more durable fuel cell powerplant are key features of the new buses.

The transit authority will use the company’s lithium-ion batteries on its 16 new hybrid-electric fuel cell buses. Twelve of the buses will be used by a consortium of Bay Area transit operators in the California Air Resources Board's only Advanced Zero-Emission Bus Demonstration program.

Operation is currently operating three Van Hool hybrid-electric buses with UTC Power fuel cell systems. Since 2006, it has purchased fuel cell powerplants exclusively from UTC Power and is the company’s largest PureMotion customer.