The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) is updating its fleet with 194 heavy-duty, 40-foot Xcelsior diesel-electric buses from New Flyer America, which manufactures transit buses and motor coaches in North America.
The hybrid buses, supported by Federal Transit Administration grants, will replace end-of-life vehicles. MBTA ordered its first New Flyer hybrid bus in 2010, and now has more than 200 40-foot and 70 60-foot diesel-hybrid buses currently in operation.
“As MBTA focuses on clean transportation, the addition of New Flyer’s extended-range hybrid buses—complete with start/stop technology running on emission-free battery power inside the Silver Line tunnel—will help fulfill its environmental needs while increasing transit service,” said Chris Stoddart, president of New Flyer of America.
MBTA is the public agency responsible for operating most public transportation services in Greater Boston MA. Since 2002, New Flyer has delivered more than 750 buses to MBTA, including diesel-electric hybrids and low-emission compressed natural gas (CNG) buses.
New Flyer has more than 50 years of experience in manufacturing zero-emission buses (ZEBs). The company says it’s the only North American manufacturer offering all three types of zero-emission transit bus (battery-electric, fuel cell-electric and trolley-electric).