Picture: Nova Bus
The residents of Waterloo Region will expect to see the first of several electric buses on their streets as Grand River Transit (GRT) selects Nova Bus as its first electric bus provider.
GRT has said to have ordered an initial six electric buses from Nova Bus, a member of Volvo Group and a leading American transit bus manufacturer. The first few buses are expected to arrive in spring 2023 with five additional electric buses to follow in 2024.
This is part of the Region’s plan to electrify its bus fleet and provide a sustainable transit service by reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Tom Galloway, Region of Waterloo Councilor and Chair of the Planning and Works Commission has said: “This is a major step forward in our plans to provide a zero-emission transit system for our community.”
“We are committed to exploring new technologies and solutions to contribute to the Region’s climate change goals. We excitedly await the delivery of our first fully electric buses from Nova Bus and the opportunity to introduce our transit customers to the future of sustainable transit.”
The Nova Bus LFSe+ provides a longer driving range and reduced maintenance costs and is said to emit no greenhouse gas emissions whatsoever. Nova Bus has designed the fleet to meet the sustainability needs of transit authorities. This aims to eliminate greenhouse gases and help them achieve zero-emission targets without changing any reliability of the fleet.
“We have always been very proud of providing robust and high-quality buses to transit authorities across Canada, and it’s an honour to be accompanying existing clients such as GRT in their transition with this first purchase of electric buses,” stated Martin Larose, President of Nova Bus.
“We strongly believe our future lies in providing sustainable solutions for communities to enjoy zero-emission transit, which will ultimately improve quality of life for everyone.”
The electric fleet is part of a two-year pilot project and will be charged at the new 305,000-sq-ft Northfield Drive Maintenance Facility in Waterloo. Operations are scheduled to begin in September 2022.
President of Nova Bus, Martin Larose will be joining us at MOVE America 2022, in Austin, Texas to appear on a panel on how we can accelerate the transition to zero emission fleets.
