Local officials gathered in New York City to unveil the collaboration project between AMPLY Power, Logan Bus Company and Unique Electric Solutions (UES) with the deployment of the city’s first Type-C electric school bus.
The project features a charging-as-a-service support model, repowered vehicles to all-electric, and vehicle-to-grid integration, which will provide a cost-saving solution for electric school bus fleets by utilizing grid services and repowering existing vehicles.
The electric bus was provided by Logan Bus Company, which is the largest school bus operator in New York City with 2,500 buses, while AMPLY Power is providing the charging-as-a-service support. Charging-as-a-service is a monthly subscription-based electric vehicle charging package that provides turnkey EV charging solutions with minimal upfront purchasing costs, which will cover all the vehicle’s charging needs.
Attendees at the ribbon-cutting event witnessed a live demo of the new school bus being charged. Plus, Corey Muirhead, the executive vice president of Logan Bus was given a real-time view of his electric fleet with AMPLY Power’s OMEGA platform.
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“We recognized the need for a service model that took the technical guesswork out of
electrification,” stated Vic Shao, CEO of AMPLY Power. “Through our charging-as-a-service solution, we make electric fleet adoption and ongoing management as simple as possible for fleet managers and owners. We’re delighted to demonstrate this depth of service with Logan Bus.”
Meanwhile, UES collaborated with Logan Bus to repower five of its Class C diesel school buses to electricity. Joe Ambrosio, the CEO of UES, said he hopes that converting existing buses will help more districts make the transition to electric vehicles by cutting some of the upfront costs of fleet electrification.
“Fleets, like Logan Bus, have another option,” Ambrosio added. “Repowering their existing vehicles by replacing the old diesel drivetrain with a new electric propulsion system can bring all the benefits of electric power, including reduced operating costs and zero emissions, for a fraction of the price. It’s a faster, cheaper and [an] easier way to get electric buses on the road now.”
Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams voiced his support of deploying more electric school buses to further the climate and air pollution reduction goals of the city.
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“I have long supported putting more electric vehicles on the roads, and these kinds of innovative public-private partnerships are critical to scaling up our electric fleet,” said Adams, who is also a New York City mayoral candidate. “We must couple these deployments with aggressive investments to build an extensive electric vehicle charging network throughout the city, taking advantage of existing city infrastructure. I thank Logan Bus Company and AMPLY Power for their partnership.”
NYC Schools Chancellor Meisha Porter echoed Adam’s sentiment and said that school bus electrification is a crucial element in the city’s push toward creating a cleaner environment by combatting climate change.
