TTC to receive hundreds of new hybrid-electric buses

A TTC bus transports people in a neighbourhood that Ontario has designated a postal code hotspot during the COVID-19 pandemic in Toronto on Monday, May 3, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette

The Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) will receive its first batch of 336 new hybrid-electric buses this month. The additional buses will enter service starting in May and add “significant capacity” to the existing fleet, the commission says.

The new vehicles will replace existing buses that have reached the end of their lifespan, including a number of 40-foot buses that will be replaced by 60-foot ones, which the TTC says will not only add capacity but also reduce travel times.

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This is the latest step in the TTC’s Green Bus Technology Plan, which aims to have an entirely zero-emissions fleet by 2040.

“Hybrid-electric buses offer residents and visitors a clean, quiet, and healthy alternative to travel around our city,” said Deputy Mayor Jennifer McKelvie in a Wednesday TTC press release.

“These new buses demonstrate the City of Toronto’s continued efforts to reduce our cumulative carbon footprint, shape a sustainable city, and achieve our goal of net zero emissions by 2040.”

The new hybrid-electric vehicles are “as close as possible to being a fully battery-electric bus (eBus),” the commission says.

They are powered by an electric motor and onboard battery system, though they are still equipped with a gas generator that produces electricity when needed.

The TTC says the environmental and cost benefits of these vehicles compared to their older, diesel-powered counterparts are immense.

“[A hybrid-electric bus fleet] reduces greenhouse emissions by 12,000 tonnes annually. To remove this amount of carbon dioxide naturally, a new forest would need to be created in the City of Toronto that is over 14,000 acres in size, or over 4,500 city blocks. Over the 13-year life of these buses, that’s the equivalent of 156,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide,” the release read.

“[It also] reduces diesel cost by $6,864,300 annually. Over the 13-year life of these buses, that’s a savings estimated, conservatively, at over one hundred million dollars.”

Of the 336 buses set to be received, 268 will be 40 feet long, while 68 will be 60 feet long.

They will gradually be entered into service following the necessary inspections and testing, and are expected to be fully incorporated into the fleet by early next year.

“As eBus technology is still developing, we’ve purchased hybrid-electric buses, which are a proven transition technology,” said TTC CEO Rick Leary in the press release.

“With the addition of these new, modern vehicles to our fleet, we are well on our way to achieving our goals while continuing to focus on delivering reliable service.”

With this latest procurement of buses, the TTC says one third of its fleet will be made up of low or zero-emissions buses by mid-2024.

“This is the final hybrid-electric bus procurement before the TTC transitions to eBus-only vehicle purchases moving forward,” the release read.

The new buses will be based out of the Mount Dennis and Wilson divisions and are expected to serve routes in midtown, downtown, North York, and Etobicoke.