King County to add more New Flyer battery-electric buses

Seattle’s King County Metro will purchase 40 New Flyer 60-foot zero-emission, battery-electric Xcelsior CHARGE™ heavy-duty transit buses from New Flyer, with plans to order an additional 80 battery-electric buses in the coming year. Upon execution of the purchase agreement with Metro, the order will be added to New Flyer’s backlog.

The recent announcement follows Metro’s 2018 electric bus evaluation program, which used New Flyer’s Xcelsior CHARGE™ buses, and is a major milestone in the county’s efforts to improve air quality, reduce carbon, and create a zero-emissions bus fleet by 2040 or earlier.

In 2017, Executive Constantine and Metro GM Rob Gannon called on the industry to invest more in battery-electric options, including the creation of coaches that could travel farther and handle the varying terrain requirements of the region. New Flyer stepped up to the challenge, producing both a 40-foot and 60-foot battery-electric bus that met Metro’s specifications and timeline needs. The buses Metro will purchase both have a battery size of 466 kWh.

TARC taps MV for paratransit service contract

MV Transportation Inc. was awarded a contract to provide paratransit services for Louisville’s Transit Authority of River City (TARC) beginning February 1.

Under terms of the five-year contract, MV will be responsible for operations, call center, dispatch, maintenance, and safety within the TARC3 paratransit service system. MV will lead the transformation of TARC’s current system by implementing a flexible service delivery model and series of technology upgrades that will improve operational efficiency and responsiveness and enhance the overall passenger experience.