Nashville's Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) has purchased a second order of two additional 35-foot Proterra EcoRide electric buses.
Jumpstarting the city's zero-emission mass transit system, MTA expects its first electric fleet of nine Proterra fast-charge vehicles to be on the road later this year.
‘The nine Proterra buses will serve the Music City's 659,000 metropolitan population and be integrated into MTA's Music City Circuit, which is free to ride for all passengers and offers easy access to many of Nashville's historic landmarks,’ says India Birdsong, chief operating officer at MTA.
MTA funded the purchase of the buses and two accompanying charging stations with a combination of federal Clean Fuels grants and local match funding. Over the 12-year life of a Proterra bus, it is 64% more cost-effective to operate than diesel and 60% more cost-effective than CNG, the company says.
