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Trinity Transit Zero-Emission Bus Feasibility Study

Trinity Transit is a small transit agency operated by Trinity County in northern California. Per a California Air Resources Board (CARB) mandate, all transit agencies within the state must plan for and begin their fleet transition from conventional fossil fuel vehicles to zero-emission vehicles (ZEV). Trinity Transit brought on our team to assess their fleet and its energy consumption and recommend how they could transition and power their future zero-emission fleet.

Operating in a rural and mountainous environment places certain constraints on the agency¡¯s transition options in terms of vehicle platforms and refueling/recharging. Trinity Transit needed to establish that any mandated transition timeline wouldn¡¯t disrupt service to those community members who depend on it most. Using our ZEVDecide software, we collected data on their fleet¡¯s service design and operations. We then analyzed energy consumption and identified a feasible charging and fueling schedule for a ZEV-equivalent fleet. From there, we worked with Trinity Transit to create a fleet phasing plan that would support a transition from fossil fuel to zero-emission vehicles before 2040.

With this plan in place, and after a site visit, we provided a concept site plan that identified locations and types of equipment upgrades. We estimated Trinity Transit¡¯s total cost of ownership over the transition period, comparing business-as-usual to their ZEV transition plan as well as estimating the potential greenhouse gas reductions over the same period. Based on this, we developed a mixed-technology fleet solution¡ªbattery-electric and fuel cell electric¡ªthat would meet operational requirements while extending the transition timeline to comfortable milestone.

After presenting the plan to the Trinity County Board of Supervisors and receiving positive feedback, Trinity Transit pursued proposed recommendations while treating the plan as a living document to modify as needed in their pursuit of a cleaner fleet.