New Flyer Industries Inc. recently showcased its all-electric Xcelsior XE40 transit bus in Georgia.
The company, which first unveiled the XE40 in 2014 and has been selling the model since, notes that the bus features a Siemens electric drive system and electric subsystems.
On June 17, New Flyer showcased the XE40 in Macon, Ga. The company says the demonstration included members of the Macon-Bibb County Transit Authority (MTA), representatives from the U.S Department of Transportation (DOT) and local government officials.
Â
“New Flyer is proud to be considered as an ongoing partner with MTA,” said Paul Soubry, New Flyer's president and CEO, noting that Macon will receive the city's first Xcelsior XD40 this month.
On June 22, New Flyer also demonstrated its XE40 bus on the University of Georgia (UGA) campus in Athens for transit and university administrators, as well as for students.
New Flyer says the UGA Campus Transit system carries the largest volume of passengers of any university transit system in the U.S., surpassing 11 million passenger trips annually. Over the past two years, Campus Transit has purchased 16 New Flyer Xcelsior buses powered with clean diesel and is now eyeing electric models.
Recently, UGA submitted a grant proposal to the U.S. DOT for 16 battery-electric buses and charging systems to replace diesel buses that are over 10 years old.
 “We're hopeful this grant opportunity will allow us to provide zero-emissions transit options to the students, employees and residents of Athens,” said Ron Hamlin, manager of Campus Transit.
He added, “The timing of the Xcelsior electric bus demonstration on our Orbit perimeter route was valuable. This demonstration reconfirmed our confidence that battery-electric technology is ideally suitable for Campus Transit.”
 “We're pleased with the positive response to our Xcelsior electric bus from the UGA community,” said Paul Smith, New Flyer's EVP of sales and marketing. “The Xcelsior electric bus is a great fit for campus operations, and the electric technology we've integrated into Xcelsior can support UGA's sustainability objectives for many years to come.’
