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LETTER: Reader takes issue with electric bus issues

Guelphite has concerns with battery-operated bus costs as well as lack of long-term usage and environmental impact data
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Tony Saxon/GuelphToday file photo

GuelphToday received the following letter from reader Iain Johnstone regarding transit solutions:

I, like many of your readers and our transit bus solutions partners and competitors, read Mr. Armstrong’s electric bus (more accurately - battery bus) article on January 18, 2020.

Guelph does need to move away from diesel and diesel-electric buses (if they have any). Diesel is no longer an environmentally friendly fuel. I also agree that Guelph needs a new garage, and this should be supported by the community.

Where I, like others, have concern, is the rush to introduce battery buses at such a huge risk and cost. I estimate that it will cost over $10 M to supply power for the first 35 buses and on top of that to ensure roll-out during power outages, another $2M for a generator. There will be a need for more millions for more power and more generation for the second tranche of 30 buses. On top of this, it will cost at least $40M more to buy battery buses versus 65 natural gas-powered buses. Economically, on an all-inclusive, life cycle basis, it doesn’t make any sense.

From an operational perspective, there are no examples of large-scale battery bus deployments anywhere in Canada. Battery bus tests in Canada undertaken by agencies like Edmonton Transit and the Toronto Transit Commission are revealing less than stellar results. These are further backed up by over ten years of test results at U.S. transit agencies like Foothill Transit in California. Manufacturing and disposal of the huge battery packs that are required is geopolitically, environmentally and economically challenging and have not been addressed in any meaningful way anywhere.

Range, particularly where you need air conditioning in the summer and heat in the winter is not at all encouraging (Edmonton and Toronto have installed diesel heaters on their battery buses in order to meet minimum range requirements!). And battery bus maintenance is about 60 to 75 per cent of the cost of natural gas, RNG powered buses if you can train existing maintenance providers or find new providers to do the necessary work on these buses.

Proven, less expensive (Guelph can save $10’s of millions using these buses versus battery buses), operationally superior and environmentally cleaner, natural gas, moving to Renewable Natural Gas (RNG) powered buses would be a more appropriate solution. Canadian agencies like Hamilton Street Railway, Calgary Transit, Red Deer Transit, Translink, BC Transit and dozens of transit agencies in the U.S. have been operating many thousand of natural gas buses for years. They have done their research, have real world results and are more than pleased to share them with their transit compatriots. With the advent and use of renewable natural gas as an alternative to fossil based natural gas, these buses now can meet or exceed battery buses last claim to superiority which is emissions. As shown on the attached chart that has been developed by the California Air Resources Board (CARB), you can actually remove Green House Gases (GHG’s) from the environment which is far in excess of the GHG reductions possible with battery buses powered by Ontario’s electric grid.

I suggest that the Guelph Mayor and Council engage WSP Canada, Change Energy or Marathon Technology, all of whom are Ontario based and have tremendous knowledge, to provide a comprehensive study with recommendations on the natural gas, renewable natural gas and battery bus alternatives. This study will not be expensive and should not take more than a few months.

Mr. Iain Johnstone, Region Manager-Canada, has been engaged in the fossil fuel, alternative fuel, energy efficiency and conservation, gas and electric utility and on-road transportation industries for over 35 years. He is a great believer that all energies are useful, that we all must focus on increasing our energy efficiency while concurrently reducing energy emissions. All in order to ensure a cleaner ecosystem while not hurting the world’s economic and social systems. Climate change is real.