New York State’s Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) have announced that over $24 million is available to replace diesel-powered transit buses with new all-electric buses. As part of the state’s $128-million allocation from the federal Volkswagen Settlement, NYSERDA will invest $18.4 million to fund electric buses through the Truck Voucher Incentive Program, and the New York Power Authority (NYPA) will manage $6 million for associated charging infrastructure.

Funding is available to replace existing diesel buses with model year 2009 and older engines, which must be removed from service and scrapped. Replacements are targeted at state government-owned bus fleets that serve Environmental Justice communities—low-income communities that experience a disproportionate share of environmental harms such as air pollution.

The state’s Truck Voucher Incentive Program provides point-of-sale rebates. The rebate will initially reduce the incremental cost of purchasing all-electric transit buses by up to 100 percent.

“Supporting a statewide effort to increase the use of all-electric busses and ramping up electric vehicle charging stations gives fleet owners the confidence they need to go greener and cleaner with their vehicles and hastens our ability to ultimately eliminate New York State’s carbon footprint,” said NYSERDA CEO Alicia Barton.

“The greening of public buses, with their high mileage and extensive travel in populated urban areas, is a key element in New York State’s strategy for making significant air quality improvements and meeting established carbon reduction goals,” said NYPA CEO Gil C. Quiniones. “NYPA’s expertise with the deployment of fast chargers, particularly under our EVolveNY program, directly applies to the electrification of heavy-duty fleets.”

Source: New York State Department of Environmental Conservation