Canada Doubles Zero-Emission Bus Fleet, Adding 307 New Full-Size Buses Since 2020

Ontario Leads Canada’s Zero-Emission Bus Adoption with 423 of 606 Total

CALSTART released its second annual inventory of Canada’s zero-emission bus (ZEB) adoption in its “Zeroing in on ZEBs” report that tracks the growth of ZEB deployment in the U.S. and Canada. Ontario continues to outpace other provinces with 423 ZEBs, 413 of which are battery-electric buses (BEBs) and 10 of which are fuel cell electric buses (FCEBs). There are 606 total ZEBs nationally, with adoption expected to grow as Canada moves to achieve its net-zero emissions goal by 2050.  

“Ontario is an early adopter, and its transit agencies are primed to scale operations with the additional investment pledged by the government,” said Jared Schnader, director of Bus Programs at CALSTART. “With the stated goal of 5,000 ZEBs by 2025 nationally, we expect to see significant growth across the provinces.”   

BEBs still vastly outnumber FCEBs in Canada, with only 10 FCEBs and those being only in Ontario. However, FCEBs had a significant increase in the United States last year, doubling from 87 in 2020 to 169 in the current inventory. Long routes and operational needs can drive this choice as one FCEB can meet the operational needs of two battery-electric buses. Additional factors such as infrastructure, cost, and owner/operator preference also influence the choice in technology.

The report provides an inventory of U.S. ZEBs as well, noting a 27% increase in full-size ZEBs in the U.S. to total 3,533. The majority of the ZEBs (1371) are in California, which has advanced clean air and emissions regulations as well as specific funding programs.

The data collected on the Canadian transit market was obtained by analyzing media reports and press releases. CALSTART also confirmed these figures with the Canadian Urban Transit Research & Innovation Consortium’s (CUTRIC) ZEB Database^™.

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