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| Plug-In Hybrid Electric School Bus |
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September 2007
At the Southeastern States Pupil Transit Conference [SESPTC] in Knoxville, Tenn., the Plug-In Hybrid Electric School Bus Project held its monthly Evaluation Committee Meeting on July 17, 2007. About a dozen members attended the meeting, and a conference call allowed others to join the conversation. Discussion topics included recent media events, anticipated delivery dates for remaining buses and purchase order concerns with Iowa and New York. Several district transportation directors expressed interest in plug-in hybrid technology. Special thanks to Derek Graham for allowing Advanced Energy to attend the conference as members of the North Carolina delegation. To stay in touch with important issues in the school bus industry, we will continue to attend regional and national conferences [see below]. Upcoming Conference Call
Napa Valley, C.A., Delivery
Ralph Knight, the director of transportation for the Napa Valley Unified School District, runs a mix of all-electric, compressed natural gas [CNG], biodiesel and standard school buses. Ralph has become known in the industry for his determination to reduce our dependence on fossil fueled buses. His persistence paid off with the delivery of a plug-in hybrid school bus on August 10, 2007. The event marked several important milestones in the program:
Speakers included representatives from the Napa Valley Unified School District, Bay Area Air Quality Management District, the California Department of Transportation [DOT], the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency [EPA] Region 9, IC Corporation, Pacific Gas & Electric [PG&E] and Advanced Energy. To view media coverage of the event, visit www.hybridschoolbus.org. Event images are also available. There may be only one plug-in school bus in California, but many agencies in the state are excited about the technology. Several local air quality agencies and municipal utilities expressed interest in the project and stated their intent to participate in Phase III. This third phase will involve a much larger group purchase of 200 to 300 buses, with the goal of placing these vehicles in groups of 10 to examine their performance in fleets as opposed to individual units. This collective purchase will push the manufacturers into higher production volumes and significantly reduce the incremental cost of the technology. Plug-In Hybrid Deployment Center [PHDC] To facilitate commercialization, Advanced Energy is launching the Plug-In Hybrid Deployment Center [PHDC]. The vision of the PHDC is to transform the transportation market through the application of plug-in hybrid technology and to ensure the marketplace success of PHEVs. The role of the center is not research or sales, but development of market support mechanisms to help plug-in hybrid technology bridge the gap and successfully enter the commercialization phase. One of the first goals of the PHDC is to expand the school bus project into Phase III. Multiple fleets with dozens of plug-in hybrid buses can become a reality through a collaborative effort focused on removing market barriers. The PHDC will be funded by electric utilities, vehicle manufacturers and manufacturer supply chains nationwide. A steering committee will guide efforts to achieve cleaner air, reduced petroleum consumption, and increased domestic security. If you are interested in supporting the development of the PHDC to support plug-in hybrid electric vehicle technology, please contact Jeff Barghout for more information.
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