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BOARD MEETING DATE: September 10, 1999 AGENDA NO. 5

PROPOSAL:

Execute Contract to Cosponsor Development and Demonstration of an Electric School Bus

SYNOPSIS:

Battery-powered electric school buses were introduced commercially in 1996. These buses have proven to be costly and unreliable, mainly due to the poor performance of the battery pack. Santa Barbara Electric Bus Works has proposed to develop and demonstrate an improved, lower-cost, electric school bus. This proposal is based upon SBEBW’s experience developing and operating the Santa Barbara electric bus fleet. AQMD’s cost-share of this $400,000 project will not exceed $100,000.

COMMITTEE:

Technology, August 27, 1999. Less than a quorum was present; those Committee Members who were present communicated their concurrence.

RECOMMENDED ACTION:

Authorize the Chairman to execute a contract with Santa Barbara Electric Bus Works to cost-share the development and demonstration of an electric school bus, in an amount not to exceed $100,000 from the Clean Fuels Fund.

Barry Wallerstein, D.Env.
Executive Officer

Background

The AQMP calls for the accelerated introduction of both light- and heavy-duty zero-emission vehicles as an air quality attainment strategy. In support of this, ARB regulations governing new-vehicle manufacturers require the production and sale of ZEVs in California. These regulations and other ARB-manufacturer agreements resulted in the introduction in recent years of electric vehicles (EVs) by General Motors, Honda, Toyota, Ford and Daimler-Chrysler.

In 1994, the California Energy Commission, Santa Barbara Air Pollution Control District and others sponsored the conversion of two diesel school buses to battery-electric propulsion. Following this, in 1996, Blue Bird Bus Company introduced a commercial electric school bus with a premium price of nearly $230,000. Approximately 12 electric school buses have been put into service in California. However, only two are in regular service today. The basic problem is that the battery packs have failed much earlier than expected and require expensive replacement.

Santa Barbara Metropolitan Transit District (SBMTD) has been operating a fleet of electric transit buses since 1991. In cooperation with the SBMTD, the Santa Barbara Electric Transportation Institute (SBETI) has been advising the SBMTD regarding electric bus operation and has accumulated a great amount of experience with these electric buses, including the use of numerous types of battery packs, charging techniques, battery watering systems, and operational strategies. In these electric bus applications, they found that flooded NiCd batteries outlive all types of lead-acid batteries and have very high reliability. On a dollar-per-mile basis, flooded NiCd batteries have proven to be lowest in cost to purchase and maintain for this class of vehicle. Today, SBMTD is regularly operating 18 electric transit buses up to 35 feet in length.

Proposal

The principals from the SBETI have formed a company called the Santa Barbara Electric Bus Works (SBEBW) in order to manufacture electric buses, and potentially medium- and heavy-duty electric vehicles. SBEBW has proposed to develop and demonstrate an electric school bus based upon their experience and success with the SBMTD electric buses.

SBEBW is proposing to develop an electric school bus using a chassis/body, also known as a "glider," purchased from Carpenter Industries. Carpenter is one of the largest school bus manufacturers in the U.S. and will assist in developing this electric bus. The electric drivetrain (motor, electronics and gearing required) will then be designed considering performance, reliability, manufacturing feasibility, product safety, serviceability and cost. A 312-volt, flooded NiCd battery system will be used because of its low life-cycle costs and reliability. The charging system will be designed based upon the drivetrain and electronics design. Final system components will then be selected and procured. The prototype bus will be fabricated, road tested, and upgraded as necessary to correct deficiencies and improve performance. This bus will then be delivered to Durham Transportation, a contract provider of school buses. Durham has agreed to demonstrate the electric school bus for transporting students in western Los Angeles county for a minimum period of 12 months. The overall project will cover 18 months.

SBEBW is presently forming alliances with Carpenter, Thomas Built and other bus and component manufacturers to ensure that the electric school bus can be brought to market. SBEBW is projecting to sell this bus for $146,000 to $160,000, assuming a production rate of 100 buses per year.

Benefits to AQMD

The proposed project is included in the November 1998 update of the Technology Advancement Plan under Project 98M1-3, "Development and Demonstration of Low-Emission Alternative Fuel Engine Technologies for On-Road Applications." The AQMP relies on the expedited implementation of advanced technologies in southern California, including electric and hybrid-electric vehicles, to achieve air quality standards. Battery-powered electric vehicles have zero tailpipe emissions and extremely low emissions even when considering power plant emissions for battery recharging.

The field demonstration will involve one electric school bus. Emissions reductions for the demonstration bus compared to a diesel bus certified to the 4.0 g/bhp-hr NOx standard, operated 15,000 miles for one year, will be 0.28 tons NOx. Using as an example the approximately 8,000 school buses currently operating in the Basin, replacement of one fourth of these with electric buses would provide NO_X emission reductions of about 560 tons for one year.

Sole Source Justification

Section VIII.B.2. of the Procurement Policy and Procedure identifies four major provisions under which a sole source award may be justified. This request for a sole source award is made under provisions c(1) and d(1): The proposed contractor has unique experience and capabilities, and the project has multiple co-sponsors.

The principals of the SBEBW, as managers at the SBETI, have gained a great amount of experience in operating the SBMTD electric buses and have successfully optimizing their operation. They have identified an optimum battery design, battery management system, charging algorithm, and operational strategy for electric buses. In addition, the proposed contractor has secured cost sharing from the U.S. Department of Transportation and joint funding from the Electric Power Research Institute and Southern California Edison.

Resource Impacts

The total amount of AQMD funding for the proposed project will not exceed $100,000. Total project cost sharing of $400,000 is expected to be provided as follows:

Sufficient funds are available from the Clean Fuels Fund, established as a special revenue fund resulting from the state-mandated Clean Fuels Program. The Clean Fuels Program, under Health and Safety Code Sections 40448.5 and 40512 and Vehicle Code Section 9250.11, establishes mechanisms to collect revenues from mobile sources to support projects to increase the utilization of clean fuels, including the development of the necessary advanced enabling technologies. Funds collected from motor vehicles are restricted, by statute, to be used for projects and program activities related to mobile sources that support the objectives of the Clean Fuels Program.

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