A decade of development in Manitoba

The Transition to Zero Emission Bus Program builds on trailblazing local efforts to develop and test electric bus technology for use in a cold-climate province. Electric bus activities began in Manitoba in 2010, when the Province of Manitoba signed an MOU with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to develop and demonstrate electric buses.

In 2012, a demonstration began using a prototype bus built with Mitsubishi’s battery technology and Manitoba bus manufacturer New Flyer’s advanced Xcelsior glider platform. The bus was used to shuttle Manitoba Hydro employees between its headquarters on Portage Avenue and a location on Taylor Avenue, where a rapid-charger was temporarily located.

Electric buses go into service on Route 20 Watt-Academy

Following the first demonstration, New Flyer applied for funding from Sustainable Development Technology Canada to expand the project and develop four additional prototype buses for demonstration.

The City of Winnipeg partnered with New Flyer for the demonstration, which saw the buses being operated in on-route service with Winnipeg Transit for four years beginning in 2014. The buses operated on a two-hour route, Route 20 Watt-Academy, and utilized an on-route rapid charging system installed at the James Armstrong Richardson International Airport. The demonstration provided key insights into the construction, operation, and maintenance of battery electric buses, and the prototypes were retired and returned to the manufacturer in 2018.

Task force forms

Recognizing the success of the ongoing demonstration, in November 2015 the City of Winnipeg and the provincial government announced the formation of a joint task force on transit electrification, which included representatives from Manitoba Hydro, New Flyer, and Red River College.

It summarized its findings in July 2016 in a report that outlined a number of benefits to new electric technology, including reduced fuel costs, reduced maintenance costs, as well as reduced GHG emissions and noise.

The task force concluded that while diesel buses were less costly than electric buses overall, the declining cost of batteries and the uncertain but likely-to-increase cost of diesel meant there could be a longer-term economic advantage to electric buses.

It also found there would be a significant cost to integrate electric buses into current transit networks, and while studies in North America had focused on small-scale testing, more information was needed to determine how to integrate electric buses on a larger scale. It was recommended that electrification be pursued in a staged approach; first deploying 12 to 20 electric buses, increasing to 120 to 200 buses, then full electrification.

Transition to Zero-Emission Bus Study

The task force noted the demonstration in Winnipeg as one of the most advanced in the world, and the practical experience gained here made the location ideal for deploying electric buses on a larger scale.

As part of its 2019 budget, Council approved a $1 million investment to study how to transform a system of planning, operation, and maintenance designed around diesel buses to one around zero-emission buses, in order to begin the transition.

The Transition to Zero Emission: Technical Evaluation Report, and the accompanying Class 3 and Class 4 cost estimates, came as the result of the study.

Transit currently retires 30-32 end-of-life buses annually and replaces them with purchases made through its Transit Bus Replacement Program. Transit is now proposing that program be replaced with a new one, the Transition to Zero-Emission Program, which includes purchasing approximately 100 zero-emission buses between 2022-2027.

The proposed plan

With the Transition to Zero Emission: Technical Evaluation, Winnipeg Transit established a clear path to begin its transition to a zero-emission fleet.

In it, Transit recommended its existing Transit Bus Replacement Program be replaced with the proposed Transition to Zero-Emission Bus Program, to help to ensure a smooth transition. The goal of the new program is to set the direction for establishing a zero-emission fleet, subject to Council approval and securing funding sources.

Under the Transition to Zero-Emission Bus Program, Transit received funding through the Investing in Canada Program (ICIP) towards the purchase of zero-emission buses.

By 2027, 15 percent of Winnipeg Transit service will be provided by the zero-emission fleet, at an estimated cost of $280.4 million. While the total cost will be higher than the projected cost to replace buses with diesel, with ICIP funding the City’s share of the cost will be lower, resulting in incremental savings of $10 million.

The first project under the Transition to Zero-Emission Bus Program is the Transition Fleet Project, consisting of the purchase of an initial, mixed test fleet of 16 long-range zero-emission buses. The buses will add capacity to Winnipeg Transit existing fleet and this will allow Transit to collect data to assist with all aspects of future planning and decision-making.

The initial test fleet and associated infrastructure is estimated to cost approximately $38.3 million The City’s share of that cost is approximately $11.4 million, with provincial and federal governments providing the rest via the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program (ICIP).

Starting in 2023, each new zero-emissions bus purchase will enable Winnipeg Transit to retire the equivalent number of diesel buses.

Because the Brandon Garage and Fort Rouge Garage only have electrical service capacity to support approximately 100 zero-emission buses, by 2027, Transit will need further investment and a dedicated garage to support continued growth of the zero-emission fleet. A replacement for the North Garage is being designed with this in mind.

To ensure the transition continues beyond the Transition Fleet Project, Winnipeg Transit is developing a Transition to Zero Emission Roll-out Plan as a capital investment roadmap for the Transitioning to Zero Emission Bus Program beyond 2027. The report will consider future costs relating to bus procurement; charging and fueling infrastructure; electrical utility updates; energy resiliency; facility retrofits; and tooling and equipment purchases.

This report focuses on more specific details of the City’s transition plan such as vehicle procurement schedule; fleet distribution across multiple facilities; refueling strategy; timing of facility and other infrastructure projects; economic impact assessment; and identifying program risk & opportunities including the potential accelerate the timeline for completing the transition and to explore advancing and emerging technologies to improve safety, reduce traffic congestion, decrease travel time, and increase the ridership experience.

The Benefits

• Compared to diesel buses, zero-emission buses have lower annual operating costs.
• Each new zero-emission bus added to the fleet will eliminate nearly 62 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions annually.
• The transition plan will allow Transit to meet its target set out in Winnipeg’s Climate Action Plan.
• Transit will power its zero-emission fleet using Manitoba’s clean hydro-electricity, reducing reliance on imported fossil fuels.

If fleet replacement begins in 2024 and continues as proposed:

• By 2030, 30 percent of transit service will be provided by zero-emission.
• By 2045 or potentially sooner, the transition will be complete.

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Sustainable Development Technology Canada

Video by Red River College: Zero Emissions Electric Transit Bus