Proterra’s “Bus Of Tomorrow”

September 12, 2011

September/October 2011 | Busline Magazine

Major essentials that are needed for “the bus of tomorrow” are expected to include zero emissions, noted reliability and strong infrastructure support. According to officials from Proterra, “This bus of tomorrow is available today at a commercially competitive price — the company’s fast-charge EcoRide™ BE-35 battery-electric bus.”

Now in use at several locations, the 35-foot bus offers seating close to a 40-foot vehicle. The composite body bus, built in Greenville, SC, is designed for an 18-year life span and is well suited for 24/7 urban bus operations. Among the “game changers” for the EcoRide™ BE-35 are Proterra’s 10-minute charge FastFill™ charging system and 2- to 4-hour (30 to 50 miles typical) repeated route capabilities, according to Proterra Director of Business Development Joshua Goldman.

“The FastFill™ is an up to 500-kilowatt electric bus charging system that can recharge the EcoRide’s™ batteries from empty to full in less than 10 minutes,” Goldman said. The charging unit is comprised of both software and hardware to  rapidly charge the TerraVolt™ Energy Storage System on the EcoRide™, with a greater than 92 percent energy charge efficiency in as little as 6 minutes. While such power transfer normally might require a substantial grid connection to feed the fast charge rate, company officials say that Proterra’s proprietary architecture allows for lower cost and lower impact grid connections while maintaining high charge rates.

According to the company, Proterra’s TerraVolt™ Energy Storage System, ProDrive System and FastFill™ charge stations provide a solid solution for fleet vehicle operators with the following results:

• An ability to use battery-electric vehicles as a one-to-one replacement of diesel driven vehicles for heavy-duty routes spanning the entire day, eliminating the need to return to vehicle depot for battery charging throughout the day;
• Reduces the cost of zero emission fleets given lower individual vehicle and infrastructure costs versus the higher costs of hydrogen alternatives;
• Lower on-board energy requirements given charging capability, resulting in lower individual vehicle weight and investment costs;
• Significantly reduced maintenance costs resulting from absence of mechanical parts in a battery-electric drive system; and,
• Wide approach and departure tolerances which enable on-route placement of charging stations.

Another key feature of the EcoRide™ BE-35 is its composite body, designed for extra long life, low weight and non-conductive safety, according to the company. “The TerraVolt lithium-titanate batteries used in the EcoRide™ BE-35 provide for safe chemistry, a wide temperature operating range and 4- to 10-times longer cycle life than typical lithium batteries used in electric cars,” Goldman said.

“One of the great features of our bus is that it gets between 17 and 29 miles per gallon (diesel equivalent range), which is significantly better than competing solutions.” He added there are other savings involved with the EcoRide™ BE-35. Because the bus is not the first heavy-duty vehicle to use a composite body, available data shows repairs are 80 percent less expensive than those of a steel body bus, Goldman said. Also, the heavy-duty motor of the EcoRide™ BE-35 has fewer moving parts, requires no constant oil changes and should be robust enough to last the vehicle’s life, according to Proterra. As for the brakes, with more than 90 percent regeneration of energy from braking to the battery taking place, brake systems should last longer with less frequent repairs and replacements.

Answering The Call

Proterra, headquartered in Golden, CO, was founded in 2004 by Dale Hill with a vision to design and manufacture worldleading advanced technology in heavy-duty vehicles that are powered solely by clean domestic fuels. After launching a successful fleet of CNG hybrid-electric buses for another company in the 1990s that are still in use in Denver, CO, Hill formed Proterra. The goal was to develop and deliver the “bus of tomorrow” to meet a need expressed by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA).

“Due to his past success, the FTA approached Dale Hill in 2004 and asked him to develop a fuel cell bus of tomorrow. He responded that he would make a battery-dominate hybrid bus that would feature a fuel cell serving as a hybrid range extender, to extend the range of the bus when its batteries were completed,”  Goldman said. “Dale began to develop his fuel cell bus with the lion’s share of the work starting in 2007. In 2008, we also started developing a fast-charge electric
bus based on some of our initial successes with the battery we chose for the hybrid fuel cell vehicle.”

Soon after the start of Proterra, the company recognized the benefits of its TerraVolt™ batteries and their inherently safe chemistry. The development of the EcoRide™ and FastFill™ charging system followed. With the launch of the EcoRide™ BE-35, Proterra has become a leading innovator in zero emissions commercial vehicle solutions. Its technology is expected to help transit agencies deliver clean, quiet running, rider and neighborhood friendly vehicles that meet government  regulations and local mandates, according to the company.

In fact, Proterra has been recognized by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) as being the first to deliver a full-size transit vehicle that meets California’s Zero Emission Bus Rules, according to the company. “Our focus is to create safe and economical vehicles and charging systems that offer the highest per passenger fuel economy of any public transit option, along with the lowest operating costs,” Goldman said. “While our vehicles are pure zero-emission buses, the energy source of our electric charging stations can range from a variety of alternative fuels.”

Proterra is continuing to work with the U.S. federal government in the research of hydrogenfueled range extension, though Goldman said market economics are currently not in place for mass commercialization of this option until feedstock fuel costs come down significantly. “The current EcoRide™ is fast-charge, plug-in capable with a 30- to 50-mile range. However, the range for fuel cell buses can be extended another 200 to 250 miles with hydrogen stored on the roof of the bus. The hydrogen goes though a pair of fuel cell engines for onboard re-charging of the batteries,” Goldman said. “We believe there may be a future for hydrogen buses, but with the plug-in EcoRide™ BE-35, we are able to take advantage of more economical electricity costs. With a pure electric bus, there is potential to experience $400,000 or more in fuel costs savings over a 12-year life span compared to conventional diesel buses, and similar fuel savings when compared to diesel hybrids. Even more important, transit agencies can plan for the future with predictable electricity prices rather than being at the mercy of continual price spikes in fossil fuels.”

Partners Help Spread The Word

Any company that focuses on new technology and ideas is greatly benefited by partners with the same goals. Proterra has had several partners throughout its history among transit, finance and government entities that share the company’s vision of safe, cost effective and clean transportation. “This partner list is growing to include our most recent investors who are sure to take our business to the next level,” Goldman said. Groups helping Proterra succeed to the next level come in the form of both public and private partnerships.

On the public side, many transit and government agencies remain active in demanding clean technology, according to Goldman. On the private side, meanwhile, Proterra’s vendors continue to provide key components and technology that come in the form of chargers, batteries, motors, etc. Proterra has also benefited from private investment firms who look at technology as a solid return on investment. Goldman credits several transit agencies in helping get Proterra’s projects off the  ground and into transit service.

“We are blessed to have strong partners as our early adopters. This includes Foothill Transit, in West Covina, CA; VIA Metropolitan Transit, in San Antonio, TX; and StarMetro, in Tallahassee, FL, among others,” he said. “All these agencies are at various levels of vehicle deployment, much in part to strong leadership and financial support. “An additional handful of transit systems have been awarded U.S. Department of Transportation’s TIGGER II grants for the purchase of electric  buses. We hope to become a partner with them for furthering a pilot program resulting in full-fledged commercial supply. In the summer of 2011, a larger number of public agencies applied for TIGGER II and other federal grant programs in  order to expand market deployment around the country.

We are also looking to Canada for partners to further our project developments.” Goldman said the market for clean and efficient transportation continues to grow on a monthly basis, especially as fuel prices become more volatile. “We have  what we feel is a class-leading product and a very accepting customer base. The form of transportation that we offer is still in its early stages of deployment, but there is no reason we cannot be on equal, if not better, footing to hybrid and natural gas buses over the next few years,” he said. “As a company, we appreciate the early efforts of such agencies as Foothill Transit, Via Metropolitan Transit, StarMetro and others. They were the early champions that got our project off the ground. We are now starting to see other systems looking at electric buses at a viable option.”

He added that Proterra has been able to help customers receive well-funded government grants to help pilot the company’s EcoRide™ and charging system program. “Providing a pure zero emissions bus makes it much easier to quantify  GHG (greenhouse gas) impact compared to mobile source carbon- based fuels,” Goldman said. “We also work with a customer’s utility source to help with the purchase or installation of renewable sources of electricity (such as wind and  solar). This allows for a near zero well-to-wheel GHG impact for moving public passengers. “I will be the first to admit there is no such thing as a zero emissions vehicle. For example, such parts as tires, plastics and rubber hoses all give off  some emissions. It’s part of that new car smell we all like. But, it terms of real emissions compared to any other technology except fuel cell, electric vehicles are the most emissions- free that can be purchased. About the only thing that tends to  beat us in the per-passenger fuel economy race is the bicycle.”

Manufacturing In South Carolina

Since the company’s beginning in 2004, Proterra has assembled a strong management and engineering team experienced in heavy-duty vehicles; state-of-the-art manufacturing; and advanced energy storage, charging and drive systems. The  company announced in 2010 its plan to build a full-scale research and development center and manufacturing plant on the campus of Clemson University’s International Center for Automotive Research (CUICAR), located in Greenville, SC.  Moving manufacturing to Greenville provides Proterra with access to tremendous research and development resources for the EcoRide™ BE-35 and the FastFill™ charging stations.

“Our goal is to construct over 1,500 buses per year and grow the company to more than 800 employees over the next five years,” Goldman said. “We have already moved manufacturing from our prototyping facility in Golden, CO, to a 220,000- square-foot assembly plant in Greenville, SC, to meet near term demand. This interim facility, with a three-year lease, is capable of producing more than 200 EcoRide™ buses per year.” Among the early adopter transit agencies helping get  Proterra’s technology and buses moving forward has been California's Foothill Transit. The agency has acquired three EcoRide™ BE-35 buses and two FastFill™ chargers with options for nine more buses. According to Goldman, these  vehicles allow Foothill Transit to be ahead of the impending CARB zero emissions bus requirement at a fraction of the cost of current trolley bus and fuel cell bus systems.

“Foothill Transit has been driving our vehicles in revenue service since September 2010 with remarkable efficiency and reliability, given the product’s pilot nature,” Goldman said. “The good news is that the federal government continues to  provide funding for this type of project and the market continues to increase. Most importantly, however, is that Foothill Transit is driving electric buses everyday with passengers on them. “We are also now building buses for VIA Metropolitan  Transit and StarMetro. Just as essential, Altoona testing is taking place on one of our buses. The goal is to have this testing completed by the first quarter of 2012.”

What Does The Future Hold?

The days of thinking that electric bus technology can only serve niche markets may soon be over. At Proterra, officials see the EcoRide™ BE-35 as a viable mainstream transit option. “Any repeated route on a 2-hour/40-mile cycle can be well  served by our product. We are also working on a longer range commuter version for the remaining rush hour routes,” Goldman said. “Thanks to on-route fast charging that fully recharges batteries in less time than a typical driver layover, we are  able to provide safe, economical and zero emission buses. We also provide simple infrastructure benefits compared to competitive technologies.

“Maybe our niche is zero emissions, but our focus is moving passengers at an economical rate. We think this need is uniform across the world.” Proterra officials look forward to working with current and new customers to further demonstrate  the adaptability of its products to a growing user base in a variety of climates and drive cycles. The company also announced in June that a recent investment of $30 million has taken place to accelerate the commercialization of Proterra’s  fast-charge transit buses and charging system. The investment is being led by Silicon Valley venture firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers (KPCB), and also includes GM Ventures; Mitsui & Co., Ltd.; Vision Ridge Partners; and 88 Green  Ventures, LLC.

This investment enables Proterra to complete critical federal validation testing of its bus, roll out additional pilot fleets and complete initiatives to significantly reduce costs and increase volume production at its Greenville plant. “We produced a  handful of buses in 2009 and 2010, but expect our numbers to double this year and expand further in 2012,” Goldman said. “Proterra has an opportunity, within three years, to produce over 400 buses should the market continue to show itself.  We will focus on increasing product reliability and efficiency, all the while growing our team and partnerships.

“Proterra continues to provide fuel cell buses for various federal research contracts, but our main focus is on the pure battery-powered bus. Battery technology has come along well enough to now be able to provide a true zero emissions bus,  one that is both economically viable as well as environmentally sustainable. “This is the ‘rocket-to-the-moon’ moment for our generation as it pertains to sustainable mobility. We at Proterra feel very honored to be a part of this movement, and  it’s exciting.”