Canada Sets the Course
with Zero Emission
Demonstration Trial
T
HE CANADIAN URBAN
Transit Research and Innovation
Consortium’s (CUTRIC)
Pan-Canadian Electric Bus
Demonstration and Integration
Trial has brought together
funding partners, research
teams, technology tools and
manufacturing stakeholders with
transit systems to lead the world’s
fi rst multi-manufacturer e-bus
technology demonstration trial.
As part of this project, electric
buses supplied by New Flyer Industries
and Nova Bus Inc., along with
overhead chargers supplied by ABB
Group and Siemens, will demonstrate
the interoperability of the
OppCharge protocol designed by
Volvo — fi rst jointly developed by
Siemens and Volvo Bus Corp. Th e
protocol standardizes the design of
the robotic off -board pantograph
that connects the charging station to
the bus, communications between
the bus and the charger, and performance
metrics of the overall system.
“CUTRIC’s job is to foster innovation
in Canada and support
job growth in the low-carbon
and zero-emissions transportation
industries,” said CUTRIC
Executive Director & CEO Josipa
Petrunic. “These projects are
crucial for advancing the commercialization
of zero-emissions
vehicles and providing Canadian
and international companies and
our transit agencies with the opportunity
to develop world-class
intellectual property in Canada.
The project also supports
Canada’s climate change commitments
with the goal of displacing
diesel technologies with
lower carbon electric propulsion
technologies.”
Brampton, Ontario
Brampton City Council approved
project funding in March 2017
making Brampton Transit the
fi rst municipality in the world to
approve funding for an electric
16 | Mass Transit | MassTransitmag.com | JULY/AUGUST 2017
bus trial focused on multi-manufacturer
interoperability.
“Th is milestone marks the
fi rst time competitive bus manufacturers
and competitive
charging station manufacturers
are designing and delivering interoperable
charging systems to
make electric transit planning
easier for transit agencies,” said
Petrunic. “Th ere is nowhere else
in the world where this type of
collaboration is in place.”
Th e city of Brampton will
lead with the largest fl eet deployment,
deploying up to 10 electric
buses and four overhead electric
charging stations.
Regional Municipality
of York, Ontario
Th e Regional Municipality of York
approved project funding in March
2017, incorporating six fully electric
transit buses with one overhead
charger in the town of Newmarket,
Ontario, in partnership with Newmarket
Tay Power Distribution
Limited. Th e unique collaboration
between York Region Transit and
NTPDL makes York Region the
fi rst municipality in the world to
have a utility own and operate an
overhead e-bus charging system to
power the transit vehicles.
“Newmarket-Tay Power’s inter
agency cooperation with the
town of Newmarket and York Region
Transit will support the Ontario
government’s Climate Change
Action Plan. Equally important, it
will support the government’s goals
in electricity conservation through
electricity load management that
integrates the principles of electric
vehicle charging, battery storage
and distributed generation,” said
Paul Ferguson, President, Newmarket
Tay Power.
“Th e York Region project places
utilities at the forefront of electrifi ed
transportation, and demonstrates
what we have all wanted to see for
several years — a more proactive
role by Ontario’s local distribution
companies in supporting electric
vehicle integration,” said Petrunic.
THE TRIAL is
expected to
deliver on-theground
results
that will prove the
viability of electric
buses in reducing
greenhouse gas
emissions from
transportation
sources.
By Maureen Shuell
Canada is at the
forefront of an innovative
demonstration project
to test the feasibility of
electric transit vehicles
using a new standardized
overhead charging
system.
Photos by CUTRIC