The California Energy Commission (CEC) has awarded the North County Transit District (NCTD) a $4 million grant to construct a hydrogen fueling station at the agency’s West Division BREEZE Facility in Oceanside, Calif.
Once constructed, the station will have the capacity to support up to 50 hydrogen fuel-cell electric buses bringing NCTD closer toward achieving its goal of transitioning its entire fleet to zero-emission buses by 2042.
“NCTD remains committed to being on the forefront of zero-emissions technology, providing clean transportation choices for our customers and improving the air quality in our communities,” says Tony Kranz, board chair of the NCTD. “This grant will enable us to do just that and accelerate our transition to a zero-emission fleet. What’s more, this new technology and infrastructure will improve overall BREEZE operations by decreasing the time needed to refuel, expanding the service range and increasing the fuel economy of our fleet.”
The CEC grant advances NCTD’s transition from compressed natural gas to zero-emissions bus operations by approximately four years, allowing the agency to rapidly scale up and leverage an initial purchase of 25 hydrogen-powered buses, set to be put into service by the spring of 2025. The construction of the fueling station and anticipated deployment of new zero-emission buses puts the agency ahead of local, state and federal goals for greenhouse gas emissions reductions. Zero-emission fuel cell buses run on oxygen and hydrogen, emitting only water vapor while in operation.
The project is funded by the CEC’s Clean Transportation Program, which invests more than $100 million annually to support innovation and accelerate the deployment of advanced transportation and fuel technologies. NCTD intends to design, construct and commission the hydrogen fueling station infrastructure at its Oceanside facility by mid-2022.
For more information about NCTD’s transition to an entire zero-emission fleet, click here.