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VIA unveils new buses that run on natural gas
Posted:
5/4/2010
At a ceremony held just east of downtown at the Ellis Alley Park and Ride, VIA Metropolitan Transit unveiled the first of the agency’s new buses that will run on alternative power sources.
The bus showcased at the unveiling is one of four that will be powered by compressed natural gas, or CNG, an alternative fuel that pollutes less than traditional diesel. These buses, which sport a new paint scheme accented by green, will be put into service May 5 on the Yellow Streetcar route to help reduce fleet emissions in the downtown area.
VIA received funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 to pay for the CNG buses, which are just the first wave of new vehicles VIA is obtaining to help reduce the agency’s emissions.
This month VIA will begin taking delivery of 30 new diesel-electric hybrid buses that will go into service on express routes throughout the system. Then in late summer or early fall VIA will take delivery of three new buses that will be powered by electricity from on-board batteries. These buses will also go into service on the Yellow Streetcar route, and they will be the first buses VIA operates that have zero emissions.
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