There were several electric buses on display at the recent American Public Transportation Association (APTA) Bus & Paratransit Conference in Tampa, lined up along the waterfront behind Amalie Arena, home ice for the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Sierra Club’s Phil Compton was there to speak to the manufacturers’ reps and snap some photos.

Conference attendees and the public got a look at a BYD bus of the same type that’s now on its way to local transit agency PSTA. Two of these will go into service on St Pete’s trendy Beach Drive later this year. Down Miami way, the Broward County Commission plans to buy 15 units.

Proterra is in the midst of a proposal for Miami-Dade Transit. A little bird told us that New Flyer is also angling to sell its e-bus, developed in partnership with MCI, to the agency, but it isn’t expected to be ready for two more years. Miami-Dade is already buying numbers of CNG buses from New Flyer.

Mr. Compton also attended a demo of a Blue Bird electric school bus in Lakeland, Florida. Blue Bird offers its Vision Type C school bus with several different drivetrain options, including an electric version with battery packs from ADOMANI. “Florida continues to rank as one of the top 15 states with the worst air quality,” said Chris Rustman, President of Tampa bus provider Florida Transportation Systems. “Introducing the all-electric school bus is the right step toward cleaner and healthier air for our communities, not to mention the lower total cost of ownership for school districts.”

Source: Suncoast Sierra Club