Passengers travelling on the Victoria Regional Transit System will soon be offered journeys on electric buses as BC Transit’s first 10 heavy-duty electric buses are set to enter service over the coming weeks.
The buses, which began arriving in April 2025, are expected to be operational on roads by the autumn.
Erinn Pinkerton, President and Chief Executive Officer for BC Transit, said:We are thrilled to see the first electric buses on the road in the Greater Victoria area. Electric buses are an important component of BC Transit’s overall plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and build a more sustainable future.
This is a massive milestone for BC Transit. We are entering an exciting new era, and I want to thank our funding partners for making this achievement possible.
The implementation of the new buses on the local network is expected to reduce carbon emissions by almost 95%, the equivalent of roughly 12,000 tonnes of CO2 over the course of their lives. Each bus will save around one tanker truck’s worth of diesel fuel per year, or 550 fill-ups for a mid-size car.
Currently, BC Transit has 125 heavy-duty electric buses on order with both Nova Bus and New Flyer, with the organisation planning to introduce almost 80 buses to serve other regional transit systems by 2027.
Funding for the first 10 electric buses was initially announced in July 2019, with the project having been made possible thanks to joint funding of 28.6 million CAD delivered as part of the Public Transit Infrastructure Stream of the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program, with contributions from the Government of Canada, the Province of British Columbia, and the Victoria Regional Transit Commission.
Further funding of 395.5 million CAD was announced in July 2023, which was supported by the Zero Emission Transit Fund and the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program.
