The California Energy Commission has awarded a $3 million grant to Proterra to fund the design, development and construction of a new electric bus manufacturing line. The project will also receive $5.4 million in private investment.

The proposed facility, to be located in the San Gabriel Valley, is expected to be operational by the fourth quarter of 2015 and to create more than 70 new local jobs. Proterra estimates that it will manufacture 424 buses during the grant term.

“We’re pleased to welcome American bus manufacturer Proterra to City of Industry and expect their new facility will spur both state and local investment, create new jobs, and potentially reduce bus maintenance and operation costs,” said Commissioner Janea A. Scott of the California Energy Commission. “Zero-emission transit is a key element of the state’s policies and programs for deploying advanced transportation technologies to help address climate change, improve our clean air, and reach our petroleum reduction goals.”

Also this week, Proterra announced that Foothill Transit, the public transit provider of the San Gabriel and Pomona valleys, has placed its fourth order in five years, ordering an additional 13 Proterra electric buses, to be delivered in 2016. This order brings the electric fleet to nearly 10 percent of the transit agency’s total.

“It’s very exciting to be the first agency in the nation to add the new extended range Catalyst XR to our fleet,” said Doran Barnes, Executive Director at Foothill Transit. “It’s also thrilling that these buses will be the first off the assembly line at a new facility in our own backyard. Demand is high for zero-emissions technology that can handle the punishing demands of heavily traveled transit routes. We’ve been operating these vehicles for five years and are eager to see what the next generation of tech can do.”

“Transit organizations like Foothill that just five years ago were considered brave new early adopters, are now being joined en masse by cities and municipalities across the nation, ushering in a new era of zero-emission transit solutions,” said Ryan Popple, CEO of Proterra.

MORE: Proterra’s new TerraVolt XR battery enables ranges of up to 180 miles

Source: Proterra