Proterra, the maker of zero-emission commercial transit solutions, signed an agreement with StarMetro, the transit provider in Tallahassee, Fla., to deliver three new EcoRide zero-emission transit buses and a charging station.

The contract stems from a Federal Transit Administration (FTA) grant received by StarMetro to pursue fast-charge, electric transit buses and charging stations.

Six other major urban transit agencies received similar FTA grants. Foothill Transit in Pomona, Calif., is already operating three EcoRide buses and VIA San Antonio Transit will deploy its EcoRide buses later this year. The four other agencies that issuing requests for proposal are Regional Transportation Commission in Reno, Nev., King County Metro Transit in Seattle, Wash., Chicago Transit Authority and Fresno Area Express in Fresno, Calif. 

Proterra’s clean transit solutions offer California transit agencies a way to address the Zero Emission Bus (Zbus) rule, which requires large California agencies to purchase 15 percent of their annual bus orders as zero-emission buses starting in 2012. StarMetro plans to have the buses in service by the spring of 2012.

With manufacturing in Greenville, S.C., Proterra is a designer and manufacturer of heavy-duty electric drive systems, energy storage systems, vehicle control systems, transit buses and fast-charging stations. Proterra’s systems are scalable to all forms of commercial buses.