Pittsburgh’s Port Authority of Allegheny County is putting 59 new GILLIG clean-diesel buses on the road as part of a replacement program to deliver more reliable and environmentally friendly public transit across the region.

The 40-foot GILLIG buses began leaving from the manufacturer’s factory outside San Francisco in mid-October. The buses are driven 2,600 miles through eight states over three-days before arriving in Pittsburgh.

Once they arrive, the buses go through a post-delivery inspection process and undergo routine state inspections. All 59 new buses are all due to be in Pittsburgh by the end of the year.

On the inside, the newest feature is USB ports for customers to charge their mobile devices. From the outside, the new buses will appear nearly identical to many of the buses already in service throughout the region.

The buses were paid for with $22 million federal, $5.5 million state, and $180,000 county funding. Each bus cost $473,000.

The buses will be deployed from each of the authority’s four bus garages and serve various routes throughout Allegheny County. They will replace the same number of buses that have been on the road and in service for at least 12 years and are due to be retired.

Later this year, Port Authority will take receipt of its first two battery-electric buses.