Summary
- CUTRIC, a Canadian transit ‘think’ tank, is promoting hydrogen buses in city plans across the country
- Cities like Whistler, Edmonton/Strathcona, and Winnipeg have experienced challenges with hydrogen buses
- Whistler’s hydrogen bus trial ended due to high operating costs and maintenance challenges
- Edmonton faced financial challenges with hydrogen buses and infrastructure expenses
- Winnipeg halted its zero-emission bus program due to escalating costs and environmental challenges, redirecting funding towards diesel buses instead
Article
CUTRIC, a Canadian transit ‘think’ tank, has been promoting hydrogen buses as a solution for cities across the country. However, cities like Whistler, Edmonton/Strathcona, and Winnipeg have faced challenges and setbacks with their hydrogen bus plans. For example, Whistler’s hydrogen bus trial ended due to high operating costs, maintenance challenges, and infrastructure limitations. The maintenance costs for hydrogen buses were 68% higher than those of conventional diesel buses, and the buses had significantly lower availability and range. This led to the decision to abandon the hydrogen buses and switch to diesel buses instead.
In Edmonton, the city faced issues with an ill-fated electric bus purchase from Proterra, leading them to explore hydrogen buses as an alternative. The Alberta Zero Emission Hydrogen Transit initiative introduced two hydrogen fuel cell electric buses, but faced challenges with high costs and emissions compared to diesel buses. The city’s plans to acquire more hydrogen buses and a hydrogen refueling station were eventually cancelled due to budget constraints, and diesel buses were purchased instead.
Similarly, Winnipeg’s plans to procure both battery-electric and hydrogen buses were derailed by escalating costs and environmental challenges. The city decided to halt its Transition to Zero Emission Buses program and redirect funds towards purchasing additional diesel buses. This decision, while allowing for fleet expansion and potentially increased ridership, also means continued reliance on fossil fuels.
Despite these challenges and setbacks in various cities, CUTRIC has continued to promote hydrogen buses and claim successes in cities like Edmonton and Winnipeg, where orders for more hydrogen buses were actually cancelled. The lack of recognition of the economic and environmental challenges associated with hydrogen buses raises questions about the validity of CUTRIC’s claims and the overall viability of hydrogen buses as a sustainable transit solution.
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