The Chicago Transit Authority says it plans to buy up to 150 hybrid buses after receiving a $121 million federal grant this week.
The Federal Transit Administration on Thursday announced $1.1 billion in awards through its Low or No Emission Grant Program. The program aims to help transit agencies transition to low- or zero-emission buses and garages.
The CTA said Friday it will use the money to buy fully-accessible, 40-foot hybrid buses.
“This solution represents the best path forward today to meet our core mission of providing safe, reliable and efficient transit services while also reducing our impact on the environment,” the CTA said in a statement.
The buses will likely hit the streets after 2026, given the time it takes to purchase and build them, CTA CFO Tom McKone said in a Thursday meeting of the Regional Transportation Authority.
Hybrid buses that use battery and diesel engine power can reduce emissions compared with traditional diesel-powered buses that make up the majority of the CTA’s fleet of about 1,900 buses.
But the new grant does little to help the CTA reach its goal of fully electrifying its bus fleet by 2040. Earlier this year, the CTA said it was buying 30 electric buses with a grant from the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, bringing its electric fleet to 55 buses.
Electric buses currently run on two lines: The No. 66 Chicago Avenue bus, and the No. 63 route between 63rd/Stony Island and Midway Airport.
The CTA reported having 240 hybrid buses about a decade ago. A CTA spokesperson did not immediately clarify how many hybrid buses are currently in CTA use.
Related Posts:
- Calling for ‘housing for all’ and free buses, progressive Rae Huang enters Los Angeles mayor’s race News Housing advocate Rae Huang’s announcement that she will run for mayor of Los Angeles injected a progressive voice into what had been shaping up as a matchup between Mayor Karen Bass and former LAUSD superintendent Austin Beutner. Related Articles Another East Bay city is banning gas-powered leaf blowers. But not…
- Calling for ‘housing for all’ and free buses, progressive Rae Huang enters Los Angeles mayor’s race News Housing advocate Rae Huang’s announcement that she will run for mayor of Los Angeles injected a progressive voice into what had been shaping up as a matchup between Mayor Karen Bass and former LAUSD superintendent Austin Beutner. Related Articles New Saratoga History Museum exhibit gives holidays an international flair Veterans…
- ‘Killing Faith’ Review: Guy Pearce Escorts a Freed Slave and Her Strange Child in Offbeat Genre Hybrid Uncategorized Once ubiquitous in American theaters (and still quite healthy in Taylor Sheridan’s domain), big-screen Westerns are relatively scarce these days. When such tales do surface, however, they’re increasingly comingled with a genre that’s very much on the rise: horror. The latest such shotgun marriage, “Killing Faith,” is a somewhat murky…
- CTA announces holiday train, bus schedule News CTA's holiday train and bus are coming to town. This year's freshly redecorated CTA holiday bus hits the road Nov. 25, traveling across 19 routes though Dec. 20. The holiday train hits the rails from Nov. 28 through Dec. 22. Find the full schedule, and days for photo opportunities with…
- Gunmen open fire at CTA bus stop, hitting woman in chest in Chicago Lawn News Police are looking for three assailants who opened fire on a crowd waiting for a bus, hitting a woman late Monday on the Southwest Side. Around 11:50 p.m., the 54-year-old woman was seated among group at the stop in the 2800 block of West 63rd Street when three gunmen left…
(Visited 1 times, 1 visits today)