State of Georgia and City of Atlanta Selects BYD and Other Firms for Open Electric Vehicle Contracts
BYD has been successfully selected as one of the suppliers for the state of Georgia’s Statewide Contracts for Public Mass Transit & Transportation Vehicles, specifically for battery-electric buses. The resulting statewide contract will be a “convenience” source for all state of Georgia governmental entities, including but not limited to state offices, agencies, departments, boards, bureaus, commissioners, institutions, colleges, universities, as well as local government, municipalities, cities, townships, counties and other political subdivisions of the state of Georgia. The statewide contract will also be available to other Governmental entities outside of the state of Georgia.
By leveraging the state’s purchasing power, local governments and transit agencies can benefit from the convenience and competitive pricing of these pre-established contracts. Under the purchasing contract, entities can buy BYD:
- Coaches – the 23-foot C6M, the 35-foot C8M, the 40-foot C9M, and the 45-foot C10M;
- Buses – the 30-foot K7M, the 35-foot K9S, the 40-foot K9M, and the 60-foot K11M.
In addition, BYD has been successfully selected as one of the suppliers for the city of Atlanta’s purchasing contract for electric vehicles, which includes battery-electric heavy duty trucks, support/taxi fleet vehicles, and buses. Departments from the city of Atlanta will be able to purchase from this contract, which will ensure competitive pricing and quicker deployment of the zero-emission battery-electric vehicles. Furthermore, outside agencies will be able to purchase vehicles under a co-operative agreement with the city. Vehicles in this agreement include the following:
- Buses – 30-foot K7M, 35-foot K9S, 40-foot K9M, 60-foot K11M;
- Coaches – 23-foot C6M, 35-foot C8M, 40-foot C9M;
- Trucks/Vans – 5F (Class 5), 6F (Class 6), 6D (Class 6) Step Van;
- Support and Taxi Fleet – e6 Five-Door Sedan
BYD’s medium and heavy duty all-electric vehicles will help Atlanta achieve its goal of reducing greenhouse gases by 20 percent from 2009 levels by 2020 and by 40 percent by 2030.
“BYD is excited to be working with customers in Georgia and we look forward to growing our presence in the state and improving the air quality for Georgians, “stated Bobby Hill, vice president of North America, BYD Coach and Bus.
BYD North America also recently announced its joint venture with Generate Capital, Inc., a leading financier, owner, and operator of distributed infrastructure, to launch the first electric bus leasing program of its kind in the United States. The first electric bus manufacturer with a unionized workforce, BYD’s cutting-edge facility in Lancaster, California, includes more than 800 highly-skilled workers.