Imagine riding in a bus that is electrically charged. You don’t have to. There are only about 300 electrically charged buses in the United States compared to 421,000 in China. Decker Electric is installing the first 150KW cord reel charging station of this type in the United States. 5 150KW chargers will provide power to 10 cord reels to slow charge the Buses at night taking advantage of discounted off peek utility power. 2 450 KW charging stations are being installed with roof top contact pantographs in two park and ride sites and one parking garage in Spokane, WA. These pantograph (top bus charging stations) systems typically take only 5 to 10 minutes to charge and are easily integrated in existing operations. They also ensure zero-emission public transit during the day without impact on the normal operation of the route. Two 800 KW generators are also being installed for back up should power be lost during a power outage.
You can learn more about the Spokane Transit Authority (STA) City Line project on their website. Find details about Spokane’s battery-electric buses on the City Line Bus FAQ sheet.