DART Wants to Buy Some Electric Buses

When DART updated nearly half of its bus fleet in 2012 and 2013, it opted for vehicles fueled by compressed natural gas. But fossil fuels are so 20th century, hence the transit agency's just-announced plans to add all-electric buses. DART isn't about to electrify its entire fleet. The plan right...

By Eric Nicholson

February 10, 2014

[
        {
          "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Inline Content - Mobile Display Size",
          "component": "18855504",
          "insertPoint": "2",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "2"
        },{
          "name": "Editor Picks",
          "component": "17105533",
          "insertPoint": "4",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "1"
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "18349797",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Combo - Inline Content",
          "component": "17105532",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "18349797",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Air - Leaderboard Tower - Combo - Inline Content",
          "component": "17105535",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        }
      ]

When DART updated nearly half of its bus fleet in 2012 and 2013, it opted for vehicles fueled by compressed natural gas. But fossil fuels are so 20th century, hence the transit agency's just-announced plans to add all-electric buses.

DART isn't about to electrify its entire fleet. The plan right now is limited to the replacement of the pink-and-yellow CNG buses currently running the D-Link shuttle route through Oak Cliff and downtown with Proterra EcoRides.

These nine vehicles, along with quick-charge stations (10-minute recharge), will cost around $13 million, which DART hopes to partially offset with a Federal Transit Administration grant. The rest would come from DART and some combination of funding partners like the city of Dallas, the North Central Texas Council of Governments, the NTTA, and others.

A model of the bus, which is in use in San Antonio (Austin has the fuel-cell model) and a half dozen other cities, will be on display to the media outside the DART headquarters from 3 to 4 p.m. on Tuesday.

Send your story tips to the author, Eric Nicholson.

KEEP THE OBSERVER FREE... Since we started the Dallas Observer, it has been defined as the free, independent voice of Dallas, and we'd like to keep it that way. Your membership allows us to continue offering readers access to our incisive coverage of local news, food, and culture with no paywalls. You can support us by joining as a member for as little as $1.