Proterra EcoRide

File:16th St MallRide - TransTeq 2014.jpg service]]

CEO Dale Hill and VP Phil Sweesy of Mobile Energy Solutions, LLC (MES) in Golden, Colorado had previously designed, engineered, and manufactured the 36 CNG-fueled TransTeq EcoMark I hybrid buses for the 16th Street Mall in Denver, Colorado.{{cite press release |url=http://www.proterraonline.com/newsitem.asp?id=1 |title=Proterra In The News: Innovative Hydrogen Transportation Project Unveiled in New Haven, Connecticut |date=September 1, 2005 |publisher=Proterra Online |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20081019190521/http://www.proterraonline.com/newsitem.asp?id=1 |archivedate=October 19, 2008 |url-status=dead}}{{cite news |url=https://www.bizjournals.com/boston/blog/mass-high-tech/2002/08/buses-combine-natural-gas-with-electrical.html |title=Buses combine natural gas with electrical system |author=Franklin, Rod |date=August 26, 2002 |work=Boston Business Journal |accessdate=12 November 2020}}{{cite press release |url=http://www.proterraonline.com/pressrelease.asp?id=1 |title=FTA Awards $5.67 Million to Demonstrate Economical Hybrid-Electric Fuel Cell Bus |date=October 13, 2006 |publisher=Proterra |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20081019190551/http://www.proterraonline.com/pressrelease.asp?id=1 |archivedate=October 19, 2008 |url-status=dead}}{{cite news |url=http://www.proterraonline.com/newsitem.asp?id=2 |title=Proterra In The News: A clean getaway: Changing transportation with hybrids |author=Lawson, Pamela |date=December 8, 2005 |publisher=Proterra Online |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20081019190526/http://www.proterraonline.com/newsitem.asp?id=2 |archivedate=October 19, 2008 |url-status=dead}} In 2006, MES announced it was designing a battery-electric bus codenamed "Origin One", recharged by onboard hydrogen fuel cells; the company announced it had already won a contract for two buses from the Greater New Haven Transit District, the transit agency serving New Haven, Connecticut.{{cite press release |url=http://www.proterraonline.com/newsitem.asp?id=3 |title=Proterra In The News: Colorado Company Building New Energy-Efficient Bus |date=February 21, 2006 |publisher=Proterra Online |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20081019190531/http://www.proterraonline.com/newsitem.asp?id=3 |archivedate=October 19, 2008 |url-status=dead}} This was followed by a 2007 contract for two more fuel cell buses for Burbank, California; by this time the key characteristics were announced: a {{convert|35|ft|adj=on}} composite body provided by Martin Marietta, lithium-titanate batteries, and plug-in charging in addition to onboard charging through the use of a range-extending auxiliary power unit (APU) consisting of two 16 kW fuel cells from Hydrogenics.{{cite press release |url=http://www.proterraonline.com/newsitem.asp?id=6 |title=Proterra In The News: Burbank Zero Emission Bus Project Fist of its Kind West of the Mississippi |date=August 15, 2007 |publisher=Proterra Online |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20081019190546/http://www.proterraonline.com/newsitem.asp?id=6 |archivedate=October 19, 2008 |url-status=dead}}

Developmental funding was provided by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA), who had awarded a grant under the National Fuel Cell Bus Program to a team led by the Center for Transportation and the Environment (CTE); CTE had selected MES to develop the prototype bus.{{cite news |url=https://www.compositesworld.com/articles/team-built-bus-body-bests-all |title=Team-built bus body bests all |author=Winkel, John |date=May 17, 2009 |work=Composites World |accessdate=12 November 2020}} MES was also a partner in the FTA's Electric Drive Strategic Plan program. MES acquired an old school bus to serve as a mobile development laboratory (MDL) for drivetrain development, including the battery, traction motor, and control system. The MDL was damaged after one battery cell leaked electrolyte, short-circuited, and caught on fire, leading MES to redesign its battery management system and add a protective enclosure for the battery modules in the finished prototype.{{rp|15}}

MES changed its name to Proterra in June 2008{{cite press release |url=http://www.proterraonline.com/pressrelease.asp?id=3 |title=Mobile Energy Solutions, LLC changes name to Proterra |date=June 24, 2008 |publisher=Proterra |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20081019190601/http://www.proterraonline.com/pressrelease.asp?id=3 |archivedate=October 19, 2008 |url-status=dead}} and exhibited a prototype of the HFC35 transit bus that October at the American Public Transit Association Expo in San Diego.{{cite magazine |url=https://www.metro-magazine.com/resources/metro_apta08.pdf |title=Transportation's Green Future on Display at APTA EXPO |author1=Starcic, Janna |author2=Roman, Alex |author3=Schlosser, Nicole |date=November–December 2008 |magazine=Metro Magazine |pages=20–50 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20091229184020/https://www.metro-magazine.com/resources/metro_apta08.pdf |archivedate=December 29, 2009 |url-status=dead}}{{rp|34}} As shown with the fuel cell APU, Proterra claimed the HFC35 had a range of {{convert|250|mi}} before needing to be refueled or recharged. Alternatively, the HFC35 could be optioned with diesel, gasoline, or natural gas APUs.{{cite press release |url=http://www.proterraonline.com/pressrelease.asp?id=4 |title=Proterra LLC Introduces HFC35 Alternative-Fuel Transit Bus |date=June 24, 2008 |publisher=Proterra |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20081019190618/http://www.proterraonline.com/pressrelease.asp?id=4 |archivedate=October 19, 2008 |url-status=dead}}

In 2009, Proterra demonstrated a variant of the HFC35 that omitted the APU altogether,{{cite news |url=https://www.sfgate.com/business/article/Battery-powered-bus-offers-a-quiet-ride-3251916.php |title=Battery-powered bus offers a quiet ride |author=Gage, Deborah |date=February 7, 2009 |newspaper=San Francisco Chronicle |accessdate=12 November 2020}} which Proterra named the EcoRide BE35.{{cite news |url=https://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/too-much!-the-electric-bus!-5678 |title=Too Much! The Electric Bus! |author=Kanellos, Michael |date=February 6, 2009 |work=Greentech Media |accessdate=12 November 2020}} The BE35 stopped in four California cities during its weeklong tour: San Jose, Los Angeles, Sacramento, and San Francisco.{{cite news |url=https://www.busworld.org/articles/detail/515 |title=Proterra's zero emission bus tours California |date=February 10, 2009 |work=busworld |accessdate=13 November 2020}}{{cite news |url=https://grist.org/article/green-light-all-up-in-my-bus-ness/ |title=A zero-emission bus tours California, Toyota flirts with ethanol, and more green auto news |author=Barz, Sara |date=February 14, 2009 |work=grist |accessdate=13 November 2020}}

File:TARC New Buses Proterras and Gillig Brts - 16308228462.jpg EcoRide BE35, docked in overhead charger (2015)]]

The HFC35 prototype exhibited at APTA '08 in San Diego{{cite journal |doi=10.1016/S1464-2859(08)70429-2 |title=Proterra unveils HFC35 hybrid transit bus |date=December 2008 |journal=Fuel Cells Bulletin |volume=2008 |issue=12 |page=2}} was later demonstrated in Washington, D.C. (Nov 2008) and a nationwide tour in regular service was scheduled for 2009, starting in Columbia, South Carolina as a football stadium shuttle for the University of South Carolina (with maintenance, refueling, and charging at Central Midlands Regional Transit Authority), with Capital Metro in Austin, Texas,{{cite web |url=https://cte.tv/project/proterra-prototype-fuel-cell-hybrid-bus/ |title=Proterra Prototype Fuel Cell Hybrid Bus |date=13 December 2013 |publisher=Center for Transportation and the Environment |accessdate=13 November 2020}} and at the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games in Vancouver, British Columbia.{{cite report |url=https://www.nrel.gov/hydrogen/assets/pdfs/fta_report_no_0003.pdf |title=National Fuel Cell Bus Program: Proterra Fuel Cell Hybrid Bus Report, Columbia Demonstration |author1=Eudy, Leslie |author2=Chandler, Kevin |date=October 2011 |publisher=Federal Transit Administration |accessdate=13 November 2020}}{{rp|4;18}} A second HFC35 was ordered by the City of Burbank, and a third was ordered by the United States Department of Defense (DoD) for use in Washington state.{{rp|13}} Burbank's HFC35 entered service in May 2010.{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/socal/burbank-leader/news/blr-bus050110-story.html |title=Burbank gets first plug-in fuel cell bus |author=Cadelago, Christopher |date=May 1, 2010 |newspaper=Burbank Leader |accessdate=13 November 2020}} The DoD HFC35 was delivered to Joint Base Lewis–McChord in Tacoma, Washington,{{cite web |url=https://cte.tv/project/fort-lewis-hydrogen-fuel-cell-pilot-program/ |title=Fort Lewis Hydrogen Fuel Cell Pilot Program |date=14 July 2013 |publisher=Center for Transportation and the Environment |accessdate=13 November 2020}} where it was powered by hydrogen reformed from mewthane produced during wastewater treatment.{{cite journal |doi=10.1016/S1464-2859(12)70059-7 |title=Hydrogen from waste in US military FCVs |date=March 2012 |volume=2012 |issue=3 |page=1 |journal=Fuel Cells Bulletin}}{{cite news |url=https://www.greencarcongress.com/2009/07/proterra-fuel-cell-hybrid-bus-in-dod-hydrogen-energy-cycle-pilot-project.html |title=Proterra Fuel Cell Hybrid Bus in DoD Hydrogen Energy Cycle Pilot Project |date=July 11, 2009 |work=Green Car Congress |accessdate=13 November 2020}}

The first production BE35 was delivered to Foothill Transit in September 2010, operating as the "EcoLiner" on line 291 between Pomona and La Verne. Other agencies that purchased BE35 buses and charging equipment included the Nashville Metropolitan Transit Authority,{{cite news |url=https://ngtnews.com/nashville-mta-orders-more-proterra-ecoride-electric-buses |title=Nashville MTA Orders More Proterra EcoRide Electric Buses |date=September 15, 2015 |work=Next-Gen Transportation News |accessdate=13 November 2020}} Worcester Regional Transit Authority,{{cite press release |url=https://www.masstransitmag.com/home/press-release/10784913/proterra-proterra-to-provide-three-ecoride-zeroemission-batteryelectric-transit-buses-to-wrta |title=Proterra to Provide Three EcoRide Zero-Emission Battery-Electric Transit Buses to WRTA |date=September 26, 2012 |publisher=Mass Transit (magazine) |accessdate=13 November 2020}} San Joaquin Regional Transit District (Stockton),{{cite news |url=https://insideevs.com/news/317939/pair-of-rapid-charge-electric-proterra-ecoride-b35-buses-enter-service-in-california/ |title=Pair of Rapid-Charge Electric Proterra EcoRide B35 Buses Enter Service in California |author=Loveday, Eric |date=May 27, 2013 |work=Inside EVs |accessdate=13 November 2020}} VIA Metropolitan Transit (San Antonio),{{cite news |url=https://sanantonioreport.org/electric-trolley-pays-a-quiet-visit-to-san-antonio/ |title=Electric Trolley Pays a Quiet Visit to San Antonio |author=Rivard, Robert |date=June 25, 2015 |work=San Antonio Report |accessdate=13 November 2020}}{{cite news |url=https://busride.com/via-adds-three-ecorides-to-fleet/ |title=VIA adds three EcoRides to fleet |date=April 1, 2013 |work=BusRide |accessdate=13 November 2020}} StarMetro (Tallahassee),{{cite web |url=https://cte.tv/starmetro-showcases-zero-emission-bus/ |title=StarMetro Showcases Zero Emission Bus |date=November 2012 |publisher=Center for Transportation and the Environment |accessdate=13 November 2020}}{{cite news |url=https://www.greencarcongress.com/2011/10/proterra-20111004.html |title=Proterra to deliver 3 electric transit buses and charging station to StarMetro in Florida |date=October 4, 2011 |work=Green Car Congress |accessdate=13 November 2020}} Regional Transportation Commission of Washoe County (Reno), and Clemson Area Transit (Seneca, South Carolina);{{cite news |url=https://busride.com/all-electric-transit-has-arrived/ |title=All-electric transit has arrived |date=August 1, 2013 |work=BusRide |accessdate=13 November 2020}} most purchases were funded by more than $25 million in grants from the FTA's Transit Investments for Greenhouse Gas and Energy Reduction (TIGGER) program.{{cite news |url=https://www.metro-magazine.com/10025169/proterra-to-supply-5-transit-systems-with-electric-buses |title=Proterra to supply 5 transit systems with electric buses |date=November 10, 2010 |work=Metro Magazine |accessdate=13 November 2020}}

Proterra introduced the {{convert|40|ft|adj=on}} Catalyst in 2014, featuring a longer range and new fast-charging system.{{cite web |url=https://www.curbsideclassic.com/bus-stop-classic/bus-stop-classics-proterra-all-electric-urban-transit-bus-the-shape-of-things-to-come/ |title=Bus Stop Classics: Proterra All-Electric Urban Transit Bus – The Clean and Quiet Shape of Things to Come |author=Brophy, Jim |date=April 29, 2017 |website=Curbside Classic |accessdate=13 November 2020}}

Proterra drew inspiration from existing and prototype composite buses: the Neoplan USA {{ill|Neoplan Metroliner in Carbon-Design|de|Neoplan MIC|lt=Metroliner in Carbon}}, Advanced Technology Transit Bus (ATTB), and NABI CompoBus, concluding that a composite bus body was best suited to reduce weight and accommodate an equivalent number of seats (37) as a conventional {{convert|40|ft|adj=on}} low-floor transit bus. The composite body forms were finished by Pearson Composites in Warren, Rhode Island, and the shells were assembled by C&C Fiberglass Components using vacuum-assisted resin transfer molding. Some of the people who helped develop ATTB would go on to work for MES.{{cite magazine |url=https://busride.com/efficiency-grows-from-the-ground-up/ |title=Efficiency grows from the ground up |author=Hubbard, David |date=January 1, 2009 |website=Bus Ride |accessdate=13 November 2020}}

Although the batteries can be recharged quickly, the overall capacity is low. The BE35 and HFC35 shared the same electric powertrain and battery design; while the HFC35 had a range-extending APU, no additional battery storage capacity was added to the BE35. The battery pack has a total storage capacity of 54 to 72 kW-hr,{{cite press release |url=https://media.gm.com/media/us/en/gm/news.detail.html/content/Pages/news/us/en/2011/Jun/0613_gmv_proterra.html |title=GM Ventures Invests in Battery Electric Bus Company |date=June 13, 2011 |publisher=General Motors Corporate Newsroom |accessdate=13 November 2020}} composed of three or four 18 kW-hr battery strings. Each string weighs {{convert|550|lb}}.{{cite web |url=http://www.theofruendt.com/uploads/2/0/6/4/2064775/ebuss.pdf#page=14 |title=Who killed the electric bus? |publisher=Theo Fruendt |accessdate=13 November 2020}} A single string is built from sixteen modules wired in series, each rated at 50 A-hr and 23 volts; the total string is 368 volts and 18.4 kW-hr, and three or four strings are used in parallel for the overall capacity of 54 or 72 kW-hr.{{cite report |url=https://www.transit.dot.gov/sites/fta.dot.gov/files/FTA_Report_No._0024.pdf#page=21 |title=Transit Bus Applications of Lithium Ion Batteries: Progress and Prospects |author=Brecher, Aviva|author-link=Aviva Brecher |date=December 2012 |publisher=Federal Transit Administration |accessdate=13 November 2020}}{{rp|12}} However, using on-route fast charging, an EcoRide BE35 set a record in April 2014 by driving more than {{convert|700|mi}} in 24 hours.{{cite web |url=https://www.21stcentech.com/proterras-electric-bus-travels-1100-kilometers-24-hours/ |title=Proterra's Electric Bus Travels Over 1,100 Kilometers in 24 Hours |author=Rosen, Len |date=May 25, 2014 |website=21st Century Tech Blog |accessdate=13 November 2020}}{{cite news |url=https://insideevs.com/news/321238/proterra-sets-record-for-most-miles-traveled-in-a-day-by-a-battery-electric-transit-bus/ |title=Proterra Sets Record for Most Miles Traveled in a Day by a Battery-Electric Transit Bus |author=Kane, Mark |date=May 4, 2014 |work=Inside EVs |accessdate=13 November 2020}} In June 2016, Proterra announced it would grant royalty-free access to the patents covering their FastFill overhead charging system.{{cite press release | url=http://www.proterra.com/proterra-opens-its-electric-vehicle-fast-charging-technology-to-mass-transit-industry/ | title=Proterra Opens Its Electric Vehicle Fast-Charging Technology to Mass Transit Industry | publisher=Proterra | date=June 28, 2016 | access-date=August 4, 2016 }}

Proterra uses the TerraVolt branding for the battery system and ProDrive for the drivetrain module, which includes the traction motor and optional range-extending APU.{{cite web |url=http://www.proterra.com/index.php/products/productDetail/C30 |title=TerraVolt Energy Storage Systems |publisher=Proterra |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110907064648/http://www.proterra.com/index.php/products/productDetail/C30 |archivedate=September 7, 2011 |url-status=dead}}{{cite web |url=http://www.proterra.com/index.php/products/productDetail/C31 |title=All-Electric ProDrive System |publisher=Proterra |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110907053811/http://www.proterra.com/index.php/products/productDetail/C31 |archivedate=September 7, 2011 |url-status=dead}} The traction motor announced with the HFC35 and the first versions of the EcoRide BE35 was supplied by UQM Technologies and branded PowerPhase 150, offering a peak and continuous power output of {{convert|150|and|100|kW|hp|abbr=on}}, and peak and continuous torque of {{convert|650|and|400|Nm|ftlb|abbr=on}}, respectively.{{cite news |url=https://www.greencarcongress.com/2009/02/proterra-ecorid.html |title=Proterra EcoRide Battery-Electric Transit Bus Uses UQM PowerPhase 150 System |date=February 9, 2009 |work=Green Car Congress |accessdate=12 November 2020}} The traction motor was upgraded to the UQM PowerPhase HD220 in 2013, which increases peak power and torque to {{convert|220|kW|hp|abbr=on}} and {{convert|700|Nm|ftlb|abbr=on}}, respectively.{{cite news |url=https://ngtnews.com/uqm-electric-drive-platform-will-be-built-into-proterra-buses |title=UQM Electric-Drive Platform Will Be Built Into Proterra Buses |date=March 13, 2013 |work=Next-Gen Transportation News |accessdate=13 November 2020}}

The first HFC35 prototype was not available for service for approximately two months to address a failure in a DC-DC converter, which provided the interface between the fuel cell APU and the traction battery.{{rp|21}}

Results from the BE35 STURAA test showed an average, combined fuel economy of {{convert|1.81|kWh/mile|kWh/km|abbr=on}} or {{convert|20.84|mpgus|L/100km}} diesel equivalent.{{rp|39}} Compared to the buses it replaces—conventional diesel buses average {{convert|3.86|mpgus|L/100km}}; CNG buses return {{convert|3.27|mpgus|L/100km}} diesel equivalent; and diesel-hybrid buses average about {{convert|4.6|mpgus|L/100km}}Argonne GREET model 2012, assuming {{convert|36000|mile|km|abbr=on}} per year and fuel consumption of {{convert|3.86|mpgus|L/100km}} diesel and {{convert|3.27|mpgus|L/100km}} diesel equivalent for CNG.—the results are up to 600% better. During {{convert|15000|mi}} of testing at Altoona for the first BE35, unscheduled maintenance included the replacement of the transmission (twice) and the traction motor (once).{{rp|86–90}}

File:Proterra EcoRide on Foothills Transit 291 EcoLiner, Oct. 2016.jpg EcoRide BE35, line 291 (2016)]]

Foothill Transit has been working with the California Air Resources Board and the United States Department of Energy National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to study the real-world performance of its Proterra buses.{{cite report |url=https://www.afdc.energy.gov/uploads/publication/foothill_transit_beb_demo_results.pdf |title=Foothill Transit Battery Electric Bus Demonstration Results |author1=Eudy, Leslie |author2=Prohaska, Robert |author3=Kelly, Kenneth |author4=Post, Matthew |date=January 2016 |publisher=National Renewable Energy Laboratory |accessdate=July 13, 2018}}{{cite report |url=https://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy17osti/67698.pdf |title=Foothill Transit Battery Electric Bus Demonstration Results: Second Report |author1=Eudy, Leslie |author2=Jeffers, Matthew |date=June 2017 |publisher=National Renewable Energy Laboratory |accessdate=July 13, 2018}}{{cite report |url=https://www.afdc.energy.gov/uploads/publication/foothill_transit_bec_progress_rpt.pdf |title=Foothill Transit Battery Electric Bus Progress Report |author1=Eudy, Leslie |author2=Jeffers, Matthew |date=May 2018 |publisher=National Renewable Energy Laboratory |accessdate=July 13, 2018}} Observed economy for twelve BE35 buses in the Foothill Transit fleet was {{convert|17.24|mpgus|L/100km}} diesel equivalent, compared to an observed {{convert|4.15|mpgus|L/100km}} diesel equivalent for a fleet of eight NABI 42-BRT CNG-fueled buses. However, the BE35 fleet operates on circulator routes at slower speeds compared to the NABI CNG fleet, which were dispatched as needed to any Foothill Transit route. The BE35 fleet achieved an availability of 80.6%, less than the desired 85% availability due to constraints on parts availability and low-voltage battery (i.e., not the propulsion batteries) reliability; the NABI CNG fleet achieved an availability of 96.8%. Total maintenance costs for the BE35 fleet ($0.41/mi) is also higher than the maintenance cost for the NABI CNG fleet ($0.27/mi).

{{Reflist}}

{{Commons category}}

• {{YouTube |id=4V-D8p3eLuA |title=Transporting America: Proterra}}
• {{cite web |url=http://www.hydrogenhybridbus.com/ |title=The Hydrogen Hybrid Bus [HFC35]: Part of the National Fuel Cell Bus Program |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090928063733/http://www.hydrogenhybridbus.com/ |archivedate=September 28, 2009 |url-status=dead}}
• {{cite web |url=https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/view/6986278/mobile-energy-solutions |title=Fast Charge Battery Electric Transit Buses |date=May 2009 |publisher=California Air Resources Board |author=Goldman, Joshua}}

Category:Buses of the United States

Category:Buses of Canada

Category:Battery electric buses

Category:Vehicles introduced in 2010

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Category:Proterra vehicles

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