West Covina, Calif.-based Foothill Transit awarded a $5.8 million contract to Proterra LLC for the procurement of three battery-powered electric buses and wayside fast charging equipment for their Electric Bus Demonstration Project.

The buses, which will feature futuristic styling and a composite construction design, will be powered by an electric drive that doesn’t depend on an Auxiliary Power Unit or onboard range extension equipment and have a 30-milie minimum range without charging.

Located at the beginning and end of the test route, the docking stations for the electric buses can deliver a 95 percent recharge in less than 10 minutes and will require no intervention or hands-on labor from the bus operator.

The project will be funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and will be deployed in early 2010 along Foothill Transit’s Line 291.

Both Foothill Transit and Proterra will be monitoring the technology’s ability to handle the demands of a regular, stop-and-go transit route over the two-year trial period.