Skip to main content

Clean diesel buses to power Maryland’s transit future

The Maryland Transit Administration is now in line to receive almost US$100 million to invest in 172 advanced clean diesel buses after receiving approval by the state’s spending board. The Baltimore Business Journal reported the new clean diesel buses will replace older vehicles – some which have been service for 15 years. The Maryland decision mirrors other significant orders of clean diesel and diesel-electric hybrid buses by transit agencies in major communities like New York, San Fran
February 2, 2016 Read time: 2 mins
The Maryland Transit Administration is now in line to receive almost US$100 million to invest in 172 advanced clean diesel buses after receiving approval by the state’s spending board.
           
The Baltimore Business Journal reported the new clean diesel buses will replace older vehicles – some which have been service for 15 years.  

The Maryland decision mirrors other significant orders of clean diesel and diesel-electric hybrid buses by transit agencies in major communities like New York, San Francisco, Chicago, Detroit, and New Jersey.
 
“The Maryland Transit Administration made a strong and smart case for modernising its bus fleet, and the choice for clean diesel buses is the best choice,” said Allen Schaeffer, executive director of the Diesel Technology Forum.  “New clean diesels not only cost far less than other alternative powertrains, but are as clean – or cleaner – than alternatives. In this instance, the new clean diesels will reduce NOx and particulate matter by as much as 95 percent compared to the 10 or 15-year old buses they replace.”
 
Among public transit agencies, Schaeffer said diesel and diesel-hybrid buses account for about 75 percent of the national fleet.
 
“In approving this expenditure, the Board of Public Works joins other major transit agencies around the country that are finding that clean diesel technology is the all-around best choice for public transportation from an economical and environmental perspective - it’s more clean public transportation for the dollar,” he concluded.

Related Content

  • Cost benefit goes under the microscope
    August 21, 2017
    Conventional cost benefit analysis (CBA) of plans for urban smart mobility initiatives needs serious rethinking, according to a recently-completed European study. The three-year Evidence Project (the Project) emerged in response to concerns about the availability and quality of documented research – including CBA – required to prove that investment in sustainable urban mobility plans (SUMPs) can be economically beneficial. Covering 22 sectors ranging from electric vehicles to shared spaces, the Project clai
  • Mobility as a Service gaining traction in US and Europe
    December 15, 2015
    As Mobility as a Service starts to move into the mainstream of transport planning, David Crawford compares European and North American initiatives. Mobility as a Service (MaaS) is a concept fast gaining traction on both sides of the Atlantic as a way of giving travellers digital multimodal one-stop shops and journey planning tools as an alternative to private car use. Planned delivery methods include subscription-based travel packages in Europe, and 'mobility aggregator' apps, including employee commute ben
  • Florida’s Altamonte Springs uses Uber pilot program with Uber to expand transportation coverage
    April 5, 2017
    To Uber or Not to Uber, that is the question cities must answer as they consider the pros and cons of inviting private transportation service providers to fill transportation gaps. Back in 1999, Frank Martz, city manager of Altamonte Springs, Florida, had an idea to expand transportation services to areas not covered by the local bus company.
  • How does transit prepare for the next pandemic?
    November 30, 2020
    Covid-19 has taught us that once-in-a-generation events do actually happen sometimes. But Ronald E. Boénau suggests that transport agencies can prepare for the next pandemic - without exactly preparing for it at all…