The Federal Transit Administration recently awarded the Connecticut Department of Transportation a $7.4 million Low-No Emission Vehicle Grant for the purchase of 10 battery electric buses and 10 DC fast chargers.
Funding from the state and other sources will add an additional $5.7 million to the project.
Funding will be applied to upgrades for the CTtransit Waterbury division to prepare the bus depot for the eventual electrification of the nearly 100 transit buses and paratransit vans. Once the project is completed, it will be the first bus facility in the state capable of running a 100 percent battery electric bus transit fleet.
“We are thankful for the strong partnership with the Federal Transit Administration and the support of our Congressional delegation,” Connecticut Department of Transportation Commissioner Joseph Giulietti said. “We are moving forward to a new normal where we help improve air quality, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, fight climate change, and advance environmental justice through the transportation sector. This project is the first of its kind in Connecticut to prepare an entire transit and paratransit depot fully for electrification, and a major step forward in our push to become the first state with a fully electric bus transit fleet.”
Nearly 40 percent of the state’s greenhouse gas emissions are from the transportation sector.