NJ TRANSIT has unveiled its first battery electric bus, which will operate from the the Newton Avenue Bus Garage in Camden, New Jersey.
This unit is one of eight new battery electric buses that will enter service this year to improve air quality in New Jersey.
The 10 million USD used to purchase the new vehicles was funded through fines and lawsuits relating to pollution.
New Jersey Department of Transportation Commissioner and NJ TRANSIT Board Chair Diane Gutierrez-Scaccetti said:The future is now for NJ TRANSIT, and this bus is just the first step along our transition to a more sustainable transportation system. I am proud to be a part of this transformational moment in NJ TRANSIT’s history.
The buses will be trialled in real-world operating conditions in Camden and will be charged at the Newton Avenue Bus Garage. This will provide NJ TRANSIT with data and information on the effects of weather, passenger volume and road conditions on the performance of the electric buses.
The project will also review the required infrastructure and will work to modernise NJ TRANSIT’s bus garages to accommodate new charging stations and the greater power needed to energise them.
NJ TRANSIT President & CEO Kevin S. Corbett said:NJ TRANSIT could not be more proud to introduce the first electric bus in our agency’s history that will soon be picking customers up along Camden’s city street. This is an especially important first step as residents in large urban cities such as Camden often disproportionately bear the effects of air pollution.
The bus will initially be used for bus operator and first responder training and will then enter passenger service in the coming weeks.
