IndyGo Electric Buses Now Serving Passengers
IndyGo's all-electric buses are now on the roads of Indianapolis, operating at a fourth of the cost of a traditional diesel bus.
"Electric buses provide our passengers with a quieter, smoother ride, raising the bar for transit in the central Indiana region" says Mike Terry, president and CEO of IndyGo. "We will have 21 electric buses by the end of 2015, the largest electric bus fleet in the country."
The electric buses, funded by a 2013 competitive federal TIGER grant, are remanufactured and rely on a zero-emissions drive system. Since the rollout of the buses in early June, performance has exceeded 130 miles on a single 4-hour charge of the 12 Lithium-Ion batteries. The highly efficient, environmentally-friendly vehicles feature lightweight flooring and seats, low resistance tires and energy-efficient heating and cooling.
"Standard diesel buses cost approximately 65 cents per mile in fuel" remarked Vicki Learn, director of maintenance at IndyGo. "The new all-electric buses cost IndyGo about 15 cents per mile driven, resulting in a bus that is four times more efficient than a traditional diesel bus."
In addition to the electric buses, IndyGo is currently installing a one megawatt solar panel system on its garage roof, thanks to a $3 million State of Good Repair Grant. Once installed, the solar panels will help offset the cost to charge the electric buses, further reducing operating cost.
