The four new shuttle buses at RDU are unlike any other in the Triangle
The first electric transit buses in the Triangle will begin shuttling passengers between the remote parking lots and the terminals at Raleigh-Durham International Airport on Wednesday.
RDU bought four 40-passenger electric buses and has added them to its fleet that still includes 10 diesel buses (four diesels are being replaced by the electrics). Passengers should notice the difference in how they feel and in how they sound, said John Connell, RDU’s vice president of operational asset management.
“Much quieter, and a lot more comfortable ride,” Connell said. “A lot more pleasant experience.”
The airport bought the buses with the help of a $1.6 million grant from the Federal Aviation Administration. Each bus, made by Proterra Inc. in Greenville, S.C., cost about $750,000, or about 65 percent more than a comparable diesel bus, and the grant helped make up the difference.
The airport also bought four charging stations, at $95,000 a piece, bringing the total cost to about $3.4 million.
But RDU expects the buses will be cheaper and easier to operate and maintain. Because of lower maintenance costs and because electricity is cheaper than diesel, RDU expects to save $350,000 per bus over their 10- to 12-year lifespan, said Michael Landguth, RDU’s president and CEO.
Landguth also notes that the electric buses will eliminate tailpipe emissions that diesels put out.
“The buses are eco-friendly and cost effective, and we believe our customers will appreciate the environmental and economic benefits,” he said.
One other difference: The electric buses have rear windows, where the engines on diesel buses block the view.
Landguth says RDU hasn’t committed to buying more electric buses the next time it needs to replace its diesels, but will consider it if the feedback from travelers is good.
While RDU got there first, other transit agencies in the Triangle have electric buses on order, too. GoTriangle and Chapel Hill Transit have each received federal grants to help buy their first electric buses and plan to each add two to their fleets sometime in 2020. Duke University expects to have two electric buses by the summer of 2020 as well.
Meanwhile, GoRaleigh has begun shifting much of its fleet over to compressed natural gas, which produces less tailpipe emissions and makes buses cheaper to operate than diesel. The city has bought 17 of them so far and plans to gradually increase to 75, or about 75 percent of the fleet.
This story was originally published May 28, 2019 at 5:56 PM with the headline "The four new shuttle buses at RDU are unlike any other in the Triangle."
