KCI wants to add electric shuttle buses to its vehicle fleet

Kansas City International Airport has a fleet of 28 compressed natural gas buses to reduce reliance on traditional fossil fuels, but now it’s planning to add a new component to that fleet: electric shuttle buses.

The City Council is set to consider an ordinance to approve the purchase of four battery-electric buses from BYD Motors, a southern California electric vehicle manufacturer, for $1.8 million. The measure is expected to go to the Council’s Transporation and Infrastructure Committee after the Thanskgiving holiday.

“It’s more environmentally friendly,” Deputy Aviation Director Ian Redhead said Friday. “Also, we reduce our maintenance costs. There’s less parts you have to worry about.”

If the Council approves, these 30-seat buses would arrive early next year and would serve KCI’s long-term economy parking lots, which currently are served by the blue bus system of natural gas-fueled buses.

The bid includes four 30-foot battery electric transit coaches, with a minimum of one charging adapter for each bus. They support overnight charging of the coaches or on-route charging if necessary. Each charge is expected to cover a shift and a half, or from eight to 12 hours.

Though the upfront cost of $450,000 per bus appears quite high, Redhead said the compressed natural gas buses cost about that same amount and are more expensive to maintain over time.

A fact sheet accompanying the ordinance said making the switch to electric buses will reduce the city’s fuel costs.

“The relatively sleek, smooth design offers the potential to save vast sums of operating expenses over the life of a typical bus,” the fact sheet said.

Redhead said these would be the first electric shuttle buses acquired by the aviation department, which has used compressed natural gas vehicles for more than 10 years.

Some other airports, including Atlanta, have purchased electric shuttle buses with the help of federal grant money. The Kansas City aviation department tried for such a federal grant but didn’t win it, so the purchase will be made with city aviation funds, Redhead said.

The aviation department sought bids from 16 suppliers and solicited bids on a national website but received only one bid, from BYD Coach & Bus LLC., of Lancaster, Calif.

BYD Coach & Bus LLC is a subsidiary of BYD Motors, which is 60 percent U.S. owned through shareholders, with Berkshire Hathaway as the largest single shareholder. BYD was established in Los Angeles in 2010.

Redhead said aviation staff visited the Los Angeles plant and production line and was impressed with the operation.

This story was originally published November 12, 2016 at 1:13 PM with the headline "KCI wants to add electric shuttle buses to its vehicle fleet."