California College is first to Convert to All-Electric Fleet
College students are getting smarter and “greener” these days thanks to the University of California, Irvine, which is poised to be the first college campus in the nation to convert its buses to an all-electric fleet.
The student-funded and operated Anteater Express shuttle service is acquiring 20 buses from BYD (Build Your Dreams) for $15 million.
The vehicles are being built at the company’s Lancaster, California plant to roll onto campus for the 2017-18 academic year, joining a hydrogen electric bus to provide more than 2 million pollution-free rides annually. Undergraduates voted to pay up to $40 per quarter to the Associated Students of UCI to cover the bus purchase and other costs. Individual rides are free.
“Once again, UCI is No. 1 in making sure we have a sustainable future,” said ASUCI President Tracy La. The campus has twice been voted the Sierra Club’s “Coolest School,” among other environmental awards. La, like many of her classmates, has relied heavily on the buses to get between classes and her job. “I hope the rest of the country can follow us,” she said. “I hope other colleges and universities will do this.”
While other schools have added some alternative energy transportation in recent years, UCI is the first to completely scrap its traditional diesel fuel-powered buses, officials said.
“UCI is taking an important step, becoming the first college campus in the country with an all-electric transit fleet,” said Stella Li, president of BYD America. “This forward-looking decision is proof of what many in higher education already know: that electric vehicles aren’t a far-off technology of the future but are here and ready to be put to use today.”
Going all-electric supports the University of California’s pledge to emit net-zero carbon greenhouse gases from buildings and vehicles by 2025. UCI will slash tons of carbon dioxide and harmful soot annually by replacing diesel with electric buses.
“The hydrogen electric bus emits no carbon – neither does the battery electric bus,” said engineering professor Scott Samuelsen, who heads the National Fuel Cell Research Center. He noted that while the production of hydrogen power and plug-in electricity does generate carbon dioxide – the leading greenhouse gas contributing to climate change – technology advances will make those energy sources carbon-free in the next few years.
BYD is one of the world’s largest companies specializing in battery technology. BYD’s green mission to “solve the whole problem” has made the company an industry pioneer and leader in several high-tech sectors including high-efficiency automobiles, electrified public transportation, environmentally friendly energy storage, affordable solar power and information technology and original design manufacturing services.
More at: www.byd.com.
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