Electric buses have had a big boost this past month in Alexandria, with DASH laying out future plans for its all-electric fleet and Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS) welcomed five new electric buses to the school’s fleet.
But electric buses have also faced some technological hurdles as well. DASH leadership noted that the buses struggle with hills and highways, and they also lack some of the heating of traditional diesel buses where the heat is supplied by the output from the engine.
DASH reported that the new electric buses have been less expensive in maintenance and operational costs than the older diesel buses — a claim ACPS echoed earlier this week — but also said the recharging ports have had a tendency to become suddenly non-functional and it can be difficult to get contractors out to have them fixed in a timely manner. Perhaps most importantly, electric buses are a significant environmental improvement over diesel buses.
Overall, DASH is hoping to have a fully-electric bus fleet by 2025 with all diesel hybrids phased out by 2027.
Photo via DASH/Facebook
