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All five of Green Mountain Transit’s electric buses are currently out of service due to a battery recall that has left the agency operating on a razor-thin margin, according to a WCAX report.
The buses, manufactured by New Flyer and delivered less than a year ago, were pulled from service in November after the battery manufacturer warned they posed a potential fire hazard. As a result, the electric buses cannot be stored inside GMT’s garage and must remain outdoors, per the January 29 news report by Laura Ullman.
Cold weather has compounded the problem. The buses require temperatures of at least 41 degrees to safely charge, conditions that have been scarce this winter. The vehicles have remained parked outside, dusted with snow, unable to operate.
“It’s been literally down to our last bus, where if we have another bus that breaks or some other accident that happens, you know, we would have to start canceling service,” said Green Mountain Transit General Manager Clayton Clark. “There have been a couple of runs that we’ve had to cut because we didn’t have a bus available, but so far it’s just been limited to a few runs.”
With the electric fleet sidelined, GMT has been relying heavily on its remaining diesel buses, stretching an already tight budget and leaving little room for mechanical failures or disruptions.
Purchase announced in June, 2024
The announcement of the purchase of the five buses was made in a June, 2024 press release.
“Adding five more electric buses to the GMT fleet marks another significant step in Burlington’s efforts to fight climate change and make progress toward our community’s Net Zero Energy goals,” stated Mayor Emma Mulvaney-Stanak in a GMT press release. “These buses will help us decrease our reliance on fossil fuels, cut carbon emissions, and improve air quality in our City. I look forward to working with our partners to continue the electrification of the GMT fleet that serves Burlington and neighboring communities.”
Miles on a Single Charge
The E-buses have 520 kWh of available battery capacity and generally will be charged overnight during off-peak hours with 100 percent renewably sourced electricity at GMT’s Burlington garage on Queen City Park Road, according to the press release While New Flyer indicates that the E-buses have an operating range of up to 258 miles on a single charge, actual range will depend on a number of variables, including topography, passenger loads, number of stops, and weather.
Funding Collaboration
Funding for the five E-buses, which together cost $8,118,526, including the charging equipment and planned GMT facility work, was a collaboration provided by the following partners:
- $275,000 – Burlington Electric Department
- $6,729,067 – Federal Government Low/No Emissions Grant
- $1,114,459 – GMT, along with Federal and State Transportation Funding
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Categories: Transportation
I know there’s a fable somewhere that fits this:
Don’t fix it if it ain’t broke?
Anyone remember one?
:)))
On the bright side, the fuel they use is considered renewable when sourced in Burlington, where there is a concerted effort to shut down the wood burning power plant.
Very hard to comment and stay on this website.
Amazing. Five busses that can’t be used. Truly a net zero investment.
No strain on the electrical grid. No fossil fuels needed to heat a garage for these busses. Too bad it cost $8,000,000 to find this out.
Great article about EV busses on Ace Of Spades HQ this morning.
How clever of them to use something dysfunctional and unchargeable during the coldest times, when electricity is purchased on the spot market! Well done!
Wasn’t there a provision in the GWSA that when an electric (school) bus was purchased, they had to destroy a diesel bus, regardless of whether it ran or not, for you know, net-zero reasons (I typo’d “treasons”… freudian.)?
Junk policies begets …………………junk!
Send the leftist political junkies to the junkyard of failed expensive policies.
I think we should donate these busses to VPIRG Aand see if they can make them work. Oh, and thanks for lobbying to waste our tax dollars on useless junk. These don’t work in this state, it’s not California. You can’t change Vermont into another state, just like you can’t change genders, whoops.
…but you CAN change genders, electric busses will work if we just keep using them, and socialism will work if we just keep trying it. Kumbaya.
As long as I am not paying for for the mistake of buying and using electric vehicles where the terrain is hilly, the weather often too cold, and the electric cost is high, I don’t care.
GOOD! And the IQ numbers of officials who bought them is ?? stable but low.