Toronto reveal plans for $1bn improvement to TTC bus fleet
The City of Toronto has announced that it will invest more than $930 million in its TTC bus fleet, both purchasing new vehicles and refurbishing others.
The money will pay for 1,043 new buses, some of which will be electric.
Mayor John Tory recently spent some time comparing three different types of “all electric eBuses” as part of the TTC’s plans to reduce its environmental impact. At a press conference in Etobicoke, Tory told reporters that the city plans to have a completely “zero emissions” bus fleet in operation by 2040.
Got a look at the electric buses the TTC will soon be testing. I’m proud that Toronto will have one of the largest mini-fleets of green buses in North America. pic.twitter.com/TefqQdr6H9
— John Tory (@JohnTory) April 21, 2018
The buses, manufactured by three companies, BYD, New Flyer and Proterra, have zero emissions and no diesel components.
Initial plans show that the TTC is expecting to get 30 in all, 10 from each manufacturer, for a total cost of $50 million by March 2019. A further 695 buses will be refurbished, with the city’s overall investment in the new TTC scheme hitting $492 million. The city’s spending will be supported by a $442 million investment by the federal government.
The city also recently discussed the possibility of implementing ride-sharing taxes, similar to those imposed by cities such as Chicago, to help boost funds for modernising its services.
"We are very serious in the city about making our greenhouse gas emission reduction targets that we have set," said Tory.
The next step will be testing the buses in the streets of Toronto, which will measure how fast the buses travel, the range they achieve, how well they perform in different temperatures, and their corrosion from weather.