Evaluation of Orion/BAE Hybrid Buses and Orion CNG Buses at New York City Transit

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) is evaluating the Orion VII/BAE SYSTEMS hybrid buses at New York City Transit (NYCT). This evaluation is part of an ongoing U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) evaluation program, the Advanced Vehicle Testing Activity (AVTA). The current AVTA evaluation activities at NREL are shown at www.nrel.gov/vehiclesandfuels/fleettest/avta.html. The NREL AVTA project is conducting evaluations of medium- and heavy-duty transit buses and trucks, including the hybrid and compressed natural gas (CNG) buses at NYCT. NREL’s evaluation of the NYCT hybrid buses follows an evaluation of 10 prototype Orion/BAE hybrid buses completed in 2002. The evaluation of the newest generation hybrid buses began in 2004 and will cover one year of operation in revenue service. Detailed data will be collected on two hybrid configurations, the natural gas version of the same bus platform, and similar conventional buses for comparison. Information being collected and analyzed includes operational data such as vehicle use, fuel consumption, and maintenance performed, as well as descriptions of NYCT’s experience implementing this new technology. The objective of the evaluation is to provide credible data and results that show the progress of hybrid electric technologies toward widespread commercialization. This will provide vital information to transit agencies considering the use of hybrid buses. The yearlong evaluation is in progress and will not be complete until later in 2005. This paper describes the background and start-up experience with the hybrid buses at NYCT and details the evaluation plans. Early results of the evaluation—including vehicle use, fuel economy, and maintenance costs—should be available for presentation at the APTA 2005 Bus and Paratransit Conference.

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/isbn/1931594163
• Supplemental Notes:
  • Full conference proceedings available on CD-ROM.
• Corporate Authors:

  American Public Transportation Association

  1666 K Street, NW, Suite 1100
  Washington, DC  United States  20006
• Authors:
  • Eudy, Leslie
  • Chandler, Kevin
  • Barnitt, Robb
• Conference:
  • 2005 Bus & Paratransit Conference
  • Location: Columbus OH, United States
  • Date: 2005-5-15 to 2005-5-18
• Publication Date: 2005-5

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Print
• Features: References; Tables;
• Pagination: 4p
• Monograph Title: 2005 Bus & Paratransit Conference

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Buses; Compressed natural gas; Fuel consumption; Hybrid vehicles; Maintenance; Technology; Transit buses; Transit operating agencies; Vehicle design; Vehicle tests
• Identifier Terms: U.S. Department of Energy
• Geographic Terms: New York (New York)
• Subject Areas: Design; Energy; Maintenance and Preservation; Public Transportation; Vehicles and Equipment;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01001921
• Record Type: Publication
• ISBN: 1931594163
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Jul 11 2005 1:08PM