The Capital Area Transit System could convert over half its bus fleet to electric or hybrid vehicles over the next five years if it follows recommendations of a study on alternative fuel use options presented by the University of New Orleans Transportation Institute to a CATS committee on Friday.
Converting the entire diesel fleet to electric vehicles would save more than $2 million annually in fuel costs alone, according to the study. Electric buses are easier to maintain and need to be replaced less often, which would generate additional savings, the study shows.
An electric bus costs $0.19 per mile to operate, compared to the diesel buses CATS currently operates at $0.86 per mile on average. CNG vehicles would cost $0.44 per mile, the study shows. Over 24 years, if the entire fleet were replaced with electric buses, the buses could pay for themselves and make an additional $7 million.
Though there is a large upfront cost for alternative fuel buses and facility upgrades, the UNO team did not factor in federal grants or credits the system could be eligible for if it cut down on emissions.
“Electric comes far away the winner,” Vivek Shah, a research associate with UNO, told the CATS Planning Committee at its meeting Friday. “The only problem is the large upfront cost, and battery-powered electric is not yet a market.”
Electric buses cost between $750,000 and $800,000 per bus, whereas diesel buses cost about $430,000 per vehicle and only three companies sell electric buses worldwide, Shah said.
CATS would need to upgrade some of its bus storage facilities if it converted to electric buses. An electric fleet also would require electric charging stations along CATS routes, with the stations estimated to cost $600,000 each. Shah recommended putting one charging station at each of CATS’ five hubs.
Shah said CATS could choose convert to hybrid buses, which at $600,000 per bus are not as expensive as electric buses. But by the time the hybrid buses would need to be replaced, Shah said, he expects the electric buses would be cheaper and more efficient.
CATS commissioned UNO last July to study the benefits of converting the fleet to alternative fuels—including biodiesel, liquid and compressed natural gas and hybrid and electric—because the system is looking to replace older vehicles and federal grant money for new diesel buses is drying up. The 81-vehicle fleet has more than 40 vehicles that are 10 years or older. The system hopes to replace eight of those buses every year.
“The biggest issue right now is money, it’s not anything else. … It’s like the federal government has put a gun to your head and told you to go no diesel,” CATS CEO Bob Mirabito said at Friday’s meeting.
The UNO team will present its research to the full CATS board on Jan. 20. —Kelly Connelly
