Honolulu unveils first of 17 new electric buses

The City and County of Honolulu has unveiled a new electric bus, the first of 17 such buses expected to be shipped here over the next year, kicking off what officials hope is a complete transformation of TheBus fleet to zero-emission vehicles by 2035.

This first bus is a 40-foot Gillig zero-emission battery electric bus with a 38-passenger seating capacity and is one of three buses funded by a Low-No Emissions Bus Program grant award from the Federal Transit Administration.

“Our administration set a bold goal to transform our public bus fleet to 100% renewable fuel by 2035 and we are now steps closer to achieving it,” Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell said in a release.

The city partnered with bus manufacturer Gillig, the Center for Transportation and the Environment in Atlanta and Hawaiian Electric Co. on the grant project.

The city Department of Transportation Services purchased an additional 16 new electric buses this year and expects to take delivery of the vehicles through 2021.

TheBus operates more than 500 buses that transport over 200,000 people each weekday on Hawaii’s most populated isle.

The transition of the fleet to zero-emission buses aims to decrease greenhouse gas pollution while reducing reliance on imported crude oil, officials said.

Officials say passengers will find out that electric buses offer a comfortable, quiet and smooth ride.

The new buses will be decorated with a design inspired by ohe kapala (Hawaiian bamboo stamping) created in-house by Transportation Services Deputy Director Dre Kalili.

In a few weeks the new electric bus will be deployed on routes based at the Ka­lihi-Palama Bus Facility, officials said.