Greenhouse gases and air pollution

By Joyce Roy

AC Transit can reduce Greenhouse gases and improve air quality by increasing ridership and using clean, energy efficient vehicles.

Getting People out of their Cars: AC Transit should be trying to make bus riding an attractive alternative to the auto to reduce greenhouse gases. But with the rider-unfriendly Van Hools, they are failing to attract riders with choices. They depend on a largely captive audience many who are poor, disabled or elderly. Some elderly people who do have cars but want to give them up, try the bus and go back to their cars because they find the Van Hool buses with its crazy seating configuration just too difficult. These low-aisle buses with their high seats may only be awkward for the able bodied but they are a hazard to those who are not. The dislike for these buses plus the cuts in service due to their cost, may account for ridership on local service remaining flat or even decreasing, as gas costs rise. An Oakland councilmember has said she would like city officials and staff to adopt an eco-pass, "but those buses....!"

Air Pollution: In the last ten years or so, diesel engines have become much cleaner so you no longer see black smoke coming from buses. So, as with other bus agencies, AC Transit has greatly reduced its particulate emissions. But it should now be using equipment that is both cleaner and energy efficient. In an agreement with CARB (California Air Resources Board) about eight years ago, they engaged in an experimental program using hydrogen fuel cell buses. It made great copy for newspapers. However, it actually consists of three Van Hool fuel cell buses that keep breaking down. And the hydrogen for them is produced from natural gas, a by-product of which is methane gas, one of the worse greenhouse gases. In spite of this experience, AC Transit has ordered eight more Van Hool fuel cell buses at $2.25 million each. That $18 million could have purchased 36 American low-floor diesel hybrid electric buses. But, when you have a "special partnership" with a manufacturer you only purchase from them and Van Hool does not make diesel electric hybrid buses as yet. Although, AC Transit has convinced CARB to give $1 million to Van Hool to develop a diesel electric hybrid bus, that is, to re-invent the wheel. American bus manufacturers have been producing diesel electric hybrid buses for more than 6 years. The person in charge of the program, who interestingly is a PR man, not a technical professional, and the incumbent claim this is the "largest and most advanced hydrogen fuel cell bus program in the world." So if three fuel cell buses that keep breaking down and which gets its hydrogen from natural gas, a by-product of which is methane gas, is the best in the world, what are the other programs like, pray tell? But then these two also claim "the Van Hools are the best buses in the world."

See news article about hydrogen fuel cell bus programs at the end.*

So what is the solution? How to truly reduce greenhouse gases, reduce even the fine particulate emissions and increase energy efficiency, which is of increasing importance as fuel costs keep going up?

Here is my vision:

Use the funds now being wasted on the hydrogen fuel cell program and the funds slated for the BRT to create BRT-lite, as outlined under `BRT-lite,' along the trunk routes, San Pablo to Jack London Square, Downtown Berkeley to Oakland Amtrak via Telegraph, and Bay Fair BART to West Oakland via the old 82 route. But instead of using diesel electric hybrid buses use electric trolleybuses along these trunk routes and diesel electric hybrid buses on the other routes. Any American bus can be can be equipped with a zero emission electric traction system.

The high cost would the infrastructure, the overhead wiring, but it has to be weighed against the savings over time in energy costs, and diesel fuel is not going down in cost. Since many people say they are in favor of streetcars, the overhead wiring should not be objectionable.

So, if we are really, really looking to the future and want transit that is zero emissions and energy efficient, we should be seriously considering electric trolleybuses. We could be a real leader.

http://www.tbus.org.uk/hybrid.htm

• An article about hydrogen fuel cell programs:

California trial shows high operating costs of first-generation fuel cell buses

A memo prepared by the Santa Clara Valley (California) Transportation Authority (VTA) for the Transportation and Planning Committee of its Board of Directors reports that the average total operating cost per mile of the agency's three hydrogen fuel cell buses is $51.66 -- 32 times the average total cost per mile for the conventional diesel fleet. The news comes from <http://www.greencarcongress.com>.

The memo also states that the fuel cell buses -- part of a Zero Emission Bus (ZEB) demonstration programme mandated by the California Air Resources Board (ARB) -- exhibit a limited service life compared to diesel buses, while their reliability and availability remain significantly lower.

The parts cost for the fuel cell buses was $34.40 per mile compared to $0.21 for the diesel fleet, the labour cost was $7.87 against $0.84, and the fuel cost was $2.86 per mile (the diesel equivalent was not quoted.

As part of an emissions reduction programme in California, passenger transport companies with 200 or more buses were required to implement a Zero Emission Bus (ZEB) demonstration programme. To comply, VTA partnered with SamTrans to purchase three fuel cell buses, which entered service exactly three years ago. Since completing the demonstration programme, the buses have been used on various routes and have now accumulated more than 75,000 miles.

VTA's experience was that ZEB availability ranged from a low of 26% to a high of 87%, and was on average approximately 65%, compared to more than 80% for the diesel fleet. Reliability, as measured by miles between road calls (MBRC), varied greatly since the start of revenue service. During the period of February 2005 through May 2007 the buses averaged 1,100 MBRC. The diesel fleet has a reliability of approximately 6,000 MBRC.

A major purpose for this demonstration programme was to determine the life and/or durability of the fuel cell stack, supplied by the Canadian company Ballard. The VTA Fuel cell stacks averaged less than 17,000 miles before replacement.

Although the CARB initial demonstration requirements have been completed, VTA currently plans to continue operating the fuel cell buses, providing reasonable parts and fuel availability can be assured. However, Ballard Power Systems, the manufacturer of the fuel cells and integrator of the system, has indicated that the fuel cells in these buses are old technology; and that it will not develop new longer-life fuel cells of this design, or provide parts for the buses' powertrains.

An additional cost was fuel loss during fuelling. The fuelling facility (which was leased, at an additional cost) was consistent and operated with an efficiency of approximately 50% -- i.e., for every diesel gallon equivalent (DGE) of hydrogen dispensed into the bus, one DGE was lost into the atmosphere. This effectively doubled the cost of fuel.

Fuel consumption for the hydrogen buses ranged between 2.52 and 4.81 miles per diesel gallon equivalent (DGE) and averages approximately 3.5 miles per DGE for a range of approximately 150 miles.

In accordance with new ARB regulations requiring the San Francisco Bay Area region to operate a total of 12 advanced Zero Emissions Buses starting in 2009, VTA plans to implement an advanced ZEB demonstration program in a joint effort with AC Transit, Golden Gate Transit, Sam Trans and MTC.

VTA is working with MTC and the other agencies to identify and secure capital funding for this program, which is estimated at $36 million. VTA anticipates that its share will be approximately $4 million.