The Port of Oakland Commissioners has approved the purchase of five electric buses from BYD Coach and Bus that will be used for parking shuttle buses at Oakland International Airport (OAK), beginning in 2024.
These will be the first battery-electric buses to be put in service at OAK and will help position OAK to meet state electrification regulations, the airport said, adding that this is the first step in the eventual electrification of the airport’s shuttle bus fleet, which is currently powered completely by compressed natural gas. Fleet electrification will continue over the next decade until OAK reaches a 100 percent zero-emission shuttle bus fleet, officials said.
“This move by the Port of Oakland commissioners is an important one for OAK. This acquisition will kick off our initiative to shift to an all-electric passenger shuttle bus fleet,” said Bryant Francis, director of aviation at the Port of Oakland. “We celebrate this progress towards a greener OAK, and we look forward to revealing these new vehicles to our passengers when they begin operations in early 2024.”
The total cost of the project is estimated to be $5.5 million and partial funding is expected from different federal and state grant programs in support of this type of project, including the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Airport Improvement Program (AIP) Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) grant.
