University of Iowa sophomore Stevie Rajwar greets driver Scott VanScoyc on Thursday as she gets on the free downtown shuttle bus in Iowa City. The bus is one of four electric buses the city has launched. (Jim Slosiarek/The Gazette)
A passenger Thursday gets on an electric bus as a sign announces that it's electric outside Old Capitol Town Center in Iowa City. (Jim Slosiarek/The Gazette)
One of four new electric buses in the Iowa City Transit fleet pulls away Thursday from its stop outside Old Capitol Town Center along the free downtown shuttle route in Iowa City. (Jim Slosiarek/The Gazette)
Iowa City Transit driver Scott VanScoyc drives an electric bus Thursday along the free downtown shuttle bus route in Iowa City. “So far, so good,” said VanScoyc, who has been driving with Iowa City Transit since 1995. (Jim Slosiarek/The Gazette)
IOWA CITY — Diesel buses have been the standard since Iowa City Transit was established in 1971, but planners say it’s time for a change to something more sustainable.
Four electric buses hit the streets last week, an effort from the city to continue making progress in line with its Climate Action Plan and goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
“This is a really big change,” said Darian Nagle-Gamm, transportation director for Iowa City. “Staff has embraced it. The public is clearly embracing it. We feel that the technology and the battery power is at a point where it was the right time for Iowa City to invest.”
The Proterra electric buses replace four diesel buses. They were purchased with the assistance of a $3.3 million in grants — $3 million from the Federal Transit Administration and the remainder from an Iowa Department of Transportation grant.
The buses can drive more than 300 miles on a single charge and are quieter than a diesel bus.
“So far, so good,” said Iowa City bus driver Scott VanScoyc. He has been driving with Iowa City Transit since 1995.
The electric buses began to arrive in late October, Nagle-Gamm said. Various steps were taken to prepare them for the road, including installing chargers to power the buses and training mechanic staff and drivers.
Nagle-Gamm said the buses have a regenerative braking feature, meaning the bus starts to brake when the driver’s foot comes off the accelerator. Drivers had training in January.
VanScoyc said the regenerative braking did take some getting used to but overall the controls are simple. “It’s just easy,” VanScoyc said, adding it’s a nice departure from driving a diesel bus.
Nagle-Gamm said the estimated life span of an electric bus is similar to that of a diesel bus. But for maintenance, she said, the cost will likely be lower than that of a diesel bus.
“One of the big reasons this is really a good time to really start investing in electric buses is because the life cycle costs have now come down lower than those of diesel buses,” Nagle-Gamm said.
She said the lower cost is due to two reasons: the technology is getting less expensive and less time required for upkeep since the buses don’t have the diesel engine.
‘Huge leap forward’
Introducing electric buses into the city’s fleet is a “huge leap forward” for the city and transportation in general, Nagle-Gamm said.
The city’s Climate Action Plan identifies embracing electric vehicles and increasing transit use among the strategies to reach the city’s climate goals, including having net zero emissions by 2050. The most recent greenhouse gas inventory showed 22 percent of the city’s greenhouse gas emissions is from transportation, according to the city.
Nagle-Gamm said any investment in making transit more efficient is a good thing but investing in electric transportation is even more impactful.
“Eighty-four percent of the energy that MidAmerican Energy provides that these buses are charged off of is renewable,” Nagle-Gamm said. “The majority of that is wind. So if the bulk of the power that's charging these buses is from clean sources, then it is an incredible leap forward for transportation.”
An added bonus, Nagle-Gamm said, is that the bus offers a smoother, quieter experience for both riders and the driver.
In the long-term, the city plans to replace more diesel buses with low or no-emission buses, Nagle-Gamm said. Not only is it part of the Climate Action Plan, but she said it’s also what the community is asking and it makes financial sense.
“We feel like it can only get better from here, so we're really excited to keep this momentum and keep identifying ways that we can modernize and make our fleet more sustainable,” Nagle-Gamm said.
Cedar Rapids assessing pilot programs
As several Iowa cities and other Midwestern cities such as Duluth and the Twin Cities in Minnesota roll out electric buses, Cedar Rapids officials plan to assess at least a few years of data from these pilot programs before deciding whether to incorporate them into the city’s bus fleet.
Cedar Rapids Transit Manager Brad DeBrower said the questions surrounding electric buses is mainly their reliability in cold weather. He pointed to a Minnesota Reformer article stating that fleets were seeing a range of issues. For instance, problems with chargers grounded the buses for months in 2021, and the vehicles couldn’t go as far as diesel buses in freezing winters without the addition of diesel heaters to prevent battery drainage.
“We're certainly in favor of moving forward,” DeBrower said. “We just want to make sure it's the right decision, and for the long term.”
The Des Moines Area Regional Transit Authority debuted seven electric buses in 2020. Two electric buses are expected to arrive in Ames in June.
The Iowa Department of Transportation received $2.7 million in fiscal 2021 from the Federal Transit Administration’s Low or No-Emission Bus Program, which is the same federal program that awarded funds to Iowa City.
The state’s grant will be used to replace older diesel buses with zero-emission buses for the East Central Iowa Council of Governments’ Corridor Rides, Heart of Iowa Regional Transit Authority and southeast Iowa bus regional transit agencies.
For any agency to move forward with federally funded electric or zero-emission buses, DeBrower said it will need to have a zero-emission transition plan demonstrating long-term management, per federal guidance. That would encompass availability, current and future resources to execute the transition and more.
Cedar Rapids anticipates drafting a plan while learning from these pilot projects to be positioned to move forward if the city decides to do so, DeBrower said, as well as working with Alliant Energy and the city’s bus manufacturer, California-based Gillig. But he said the city may need the expertise of an outside consultant to assess Cedar Rapids’ needs in carrying out such a transition.
Among the factors Cedar Rapids would need to decide include how many electric buses to purchase, whether to modify the existing bus facility or build a new one, whether the city would need more land to accommodate these buses, what type of charging system to use and the estimated cost of these changes.
“This is a big commitment,” DeBrower said, but added the federal funds available would help absorb the costs of a transition.
If the city opts not to switch to these buses, DeBrower anticipates transitioning to low-emission or alternative-fuel buses. Cedar Rapids’ Community Climate Action Plan calls for making the city’s entire fleet low-emission to reduce carbon emissions by 2030 and achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.
“Hopefully a year from now, we'll have that road map ready to roll and then we determine where do we go from there?” DeBrower said.
Using Iowa City Transit
The Iowa City electric buses are starting out on the downtown shuttle and Oakcrest routes and will move to other routes in the coming weeks. All routes except the West Iowa City route will pilot the buses.
Individuals can download the Transit App to plan their next trip or visit icgov.org/transit. Those with questions or help planning a trip can call Iowa City Transit at 319-356-5151 or email ICTransit@iowa-city.org.
Comments: (319) 339-3155; izabela.zaluska@thegazette.com
Marissa Payne of The Gazette contributed to this report.
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