conversion bus bodies and fits them onto cutaway chassis and cabs, usually from Chevrolet and Ford. Te Newton chas- sis slated for the pilot began arriving the week of Sept. 12. Avia Ashok Leyland Motors S.R.O., based in Letňany, Czech Republic, is building the Newton cabs and chassis for the eTrans, while Waltham, Mass.-based A123 Systems is supplying its batteries, Carson said. Trans Tech receives the Smith chassis


fully functional, with the drivetrains, drive motors, battery packs, wire harnesses, control systems, electric power, frame rails, cab, driver’s seats and driver controls already in place. Trans Tech makes the Type-A bodies, both the exterior walls and the roof panels, by sizing and notching the raw non-composite material it purchases for the body skins, and then fits the bodies to the chassis. Trans Tech then assembles all of the


body components, the rear seating, plywood flooring, exterior and interior lighting and related wiring; connects the electrical systems of chassis and body; paints the vehicles; and brings the buses to market. The eTrans will be of- fered nationwide through Trans Tech’s distributor network, but the bus com- pany will focus sales efforts first where it initially found the most demand: in the New York metropolitan area, one of the largest markets for Type-A school buses, and on the West Coast. Te eTrans is expected to run about 100


to 130 miles per charge on its lithium-ion batteries, depending on passenger load, terrain and pedal-to-the-medal driver habits. Each bus will require a single-phase, J1772-compliant charging station, said Smith’s Carson. Recharging takes about eight hours. Te eTrans 120kw induction-based,


permanent magnet drive electric motor is expected to rate 160 horsepower with almost 500 pounds of foot torque at zero RPMs, Carson added. Te 278-volt batter- ies that underpin the bus should propel it to speeds of up to 50 mph. A regenera- tive braking system is aimed at helping recharge the vehicle’s batteries. According to Smith, the electricity costs of a Newton- based vehicle should be about 80 percent less than a comparable diesel vehicle.


Trans Tech Bus President Dan Daniels seen here with the Smith Electric Vehicles Newton chassis, which will be used in Trans Tech’s new “eTrans” electric Type-A school bus.


Motors are powered by electricity


stored in the batteries, while computers regulate and control propulsion mech- anisms


just like they do in modern


combustion engines, to ensure a constant flow of power is provided based on driver inputs. Te eTrans will seat 42 passengers and have a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of 26,000 pounds. Optional heating and air-conditioning


systems that can sap energy and limit driving range will be powered by a small auxiliary unit fueled by either com- pressed natural gas or liquid propane. However, the base model eTrans would be truly all-electric for fleets in temper- ate climates or where cooling and heating are not required, said Dan Daniels, presi- dent at Trans Tech. Te eTrans will also produce an audible “safety” tone, Daniels said, to alert otherwise unaware pedes- trians that the sometimes nearly silent


electric vehicles are nearby. Te eTrans concept began with an April


2010 request from a Trans Tech customer in New York who was


seeking an all-


electric Type A. Smith Electric emerged shortly thereafter as Trans Tech’s “supplier of choice,” Daniels said, after Smith had raised its profile in the United States. Smith, which bills itself as “the world’s


largest manufacturer of commercial elec- tric vehicles,” had a month earlier begun the process of buying its former British parent by acquiring a majority stake from the Tanfield Group. Last November Dan- iels traveled to meet Smith executives at their Kansas City offices to discuss the market potential in teaming up to make an all-electric Type A. While those talks continued, Smith completed its buyout Jan. 1, and moved its global headquarters to Kansas City. Trans Tech and Smith final- ized the eTrans contract April 25.


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