This batch of thirty 100 percent electric buses are the first vehicles at Newton facility, RTC's third operations facility entirely dedicated to electrification, and their arrival marks the beginning of the transition to the operation of an entire fleet of electric buses.
The buses will arrive at RTC following a joint call for tenders, for which the Société de transport de Montréal will be the agent, and that will be coordinated by the Association du transport urbain du Québec. This call for tenders is scheduled to be issued in 2022.
“The transportation electrification project is central to the 2018-2027 Strategic Plan, and RTC is doing everything possible to strategically deploy this important energy transition” said Maude Mercier Larouche, RTC President. “With the creation of a project office dedicated to electrification, the acquisition of the Newton facility and the deployment of the pilot project for the testing of 100 percent electric vehicles, RTC is ensuring that it is properly orchestrating the important process that is underway and that will provide benefits for everyone.”
In conjunction with the public meeting of the Board of Directors, RTC also announced the awarding of a contract to Hitachi Energy for the acquisition of charging equipment to be used for RTC's 100 percent electric bus trial project. To this end, RTC recently confirmed the lease of three LFSe+ buses from Nova Bus. This three-year project also aims to test all the equipment and systems required for their operation. The trial project will begin before the end of 2022.
RTC will conduct tests to validate the compatibility and performance of the charging equipment with several models of electric buses available on the market. These tests, which will be conducted in collaboration with Hitachi Energy and other transit companies, will provide relevant information on the integration of the technologies and guide future tenders.
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