The Thomas Built Buses C2e, known as “Jouley,” is displayed at the Daimler Trucks North America booth at ACT EXPO. Another Thomas
electric bus powered by Proterra and Meritor, Inc. is currently being tested in San Diego.
as attuned to the grants and funding that are available to California districts, for example. Along with the cost savings in fuel and operations, the additional funding sources could help soften Blue Bird’s $350,000 price tag per vehicle. The Lion Electric Company placed the first large electric school buses on the road several years ago and now counts more than 200 deployed across North America, company officials said. Allison Transmission has also joined the electric market. This past April, the company purchased Vantage Power, along with AxleTech’s Electric Vehicle Systems Division, which signaled significant movement in the electric school bus market.
Both the AxleTech and Vantage Power acquisitions
support Allison’s position as a leading innovator in propulsion technology. It complements Allison’s exist- ing abilities to develop an adaptation of electrification in commercial vehicles. Vantage Power is a technology company that is based in London. Vantage specializes in developing connected vehicle technologies and electri- fied propulsion for medium- to heavy-duty vehicles. With its main focus on vehicle telemetry and con-
nectivity, control systems and vehicle integration, plus battery technology development, Vantage Power tech- nologies have been included in many applications. Those include grid energy storage and complete electric hybrid system retrofits for buses. AxleTech focuses on designing, engineering, man- ufacturing, selling, servicing axles, and integrated electrified axle solutions for heavy-duty commercial vehicles. Founded about 100 years ago, the large global
32 School Transportation News • AUGUST 2019
company has focused on many components, including after-market parts and advanced powertrain systems. At Thomas Built Buses, the company is also using a
strategic lineup of vendors for its electric vehicles. Thom- as Built’s Saf-T-Liner eC2 electric bus boasts no vehicle emissions and no noise pollution. With testing currently being conducted in San Diego, the bus is manufactured by Proterra, and it uses EV technology that is provided by EDI and Meritor, Inc. The goal of creating an electric school bus sparked the partnership between Proterra and Daimler, the parent company of Thomas Built. Daimler has primarily focused on electric trucks, while Proterra is known for building electric transit buses. The companies said it makes sense to use electric powertrains on school buses. Proterra noted that school buses drive predictable distances each day, which makes charging management much easier. Proterra will receive funding from Daim- ler, plus insight and assistance with how to build larger vehicles, while Daimler will leverage Proterra’s experience with electric buses.
More Efficient Drivetrains & Clean-Burning Engines Aside from purely electric vehicles, hybrid-electric buses are also an emerging market for partnerships and acquisitions among vendors. For instance, there is the recent acquisition by Allison Transmission drivetrain and components manufacturer AxleTech. Agility Fuel Solutions, which is known for its compressed
natural gas (CNG) and propane systems for Thomas Built Buses, plus other commercial buses and trucks, is integrat-
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