Coalition of Industry Leaders Launches National Fuel Cell Bus Initiative.Business Editors LONG BEACH, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 17, 2003 Transit Offers Best Early Market for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells: Multi-Year Effort to Develop, Deploy and Commercialize Newest Technologies in Transit Bus A transit bus (also known as a commuter bus) in the United States is usually operated by an urban-suburban bus line, a governmental public transit agency, or a contractor. A transit bus is normally used on public transit routes. Applications A broad-based industry coalition of key hydrogen and fuel cell bus users and suppliers is launching an initiative to create a targeted, multi-year program to develop, deploy and commercialize clean, fuel cell and hydrogen powered drive systems for transit. The initiative's goal is to drive down the costs and increase the durability of fuel cell systems and components through an industry-government partnership. WestStart-CALSTART is coordinating the National Fuel Cell Bus Technology Initiative (NFCBTI), envisioned as a 6-year, $150-million dollar development effort to support the research, development, and demonstration of fuel cell and hydrogen technology. The initiative is supported by an array of key industry leaders, including AC Transit AC Transit (in full, Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District) is a regional bus agency serving parts of Alameda County and Contra Costa County in the western coastal area of the East Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area. , Ballard, Boeing, the CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. Coalition to Advance Sustainable Technologies, ECD ECD Early Childhood Development ECD Electron Capture Detector ECD Energy Citations Database ECD Executive Creative Director (advertising) ECD Ethyl Cysteinate Dimer ECD Electron Capture Dissociation ECD Electronic Civil Disobedience Ovonics, Hydrogenics, ISE Ise (ē`sā), city (1990 pop. 104,164), Mie prefecture, S Honshu, Japan, on Ise Bay. It is one of the foremost religious centers of Shinto, the site of the shrines of Ise. Research, Northeast Advanced Vehicle Consortium (NAVC NAVC North American Veterinary Conference NAVC Northeast Advanced Vehicle Consortium ), Quantum Technologies, Sunline Transit, Texaco Ovonic o·von·ic adj. Of or relating to a device whose operation is based on the Ovshinsky effect. [Ov(shinsky effect) + (electr)onic.] Hydrogen Systems, Thor Industries Thor Industries, Inc. is a manufacturer of recreation vehicles and mid-sized commercial buses. History Thor Industries, Inc., was founded on August 29, 1980, when Wade F. B. Thompson and Peter B. Orthwein acquired Airstream. and the Tri-Metropolitan Transportation District of Oregon (TriMet). "For the transportation market, the best way to introduce new fuels is in transit," said John Boesel, president & CEO of WestStart-CALSTART. "With transit buses, you build one hydrogen station and then you've addressed the question of 'where do I refill.' That allows the critical early stage research and development dollars to be focused on the issues of cost, durability, and reliability. It's clear to our coalition that focusing work on reliability and cost reduction in buses will speed and support efforts for all fuel cell work and will keep pace with the efforts of global competitors." The initiative effort proposes the following: -- Work to develop a 6-year, $25-million per year program to address fuel cell and hydrogen vehicle A hydrogen vehicle is a vehicle that uses hydrogen as its on-board fuel for motive power. The term may refer to a personal transportation vehicle, such as an automobile, or any other vehicle that use hydrogen in a similar fashion, such as an aircraft. technology commercialization challenges -- Focus on reducing technical and cost barriers for fuel cell and hydrogen use in the transit sector, including reliability, life-cycle, weight, volume, start-up time, etc. -- Use transit demonstrations as "rolling classrooms" for fuel cell and hydrogen education Fuel cells are still far from ready for transportation use. Most successful fuel cells to date have been larger units used in stationary applications. Their size makes scaling them to a bus' requirements an easier near-term step from a functional and economic standpoint. Buses have fewer packaging and weight constraints, are serviced by well trained mechanics, operate on fixed routes, and utilize centralized cen·tral·ize v. cen·tral·ized, cen·tral·iz·ing, cen·tral·iz·es v.tr. 1. To draw into or toward a center; consolidate. 2. refueling stations. "The transit industry has already shown the nation that it's a leader in terms of the introduction of alternative fuels. Over 25 percent of all new transit buses sold today are powered by alternative fuels. If the rest of the transportation sector followed transit's lead, we could cut the nation's dependence on OPEC OPEC: see Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. OPEC in full Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries Multinational organization established in 1960 to coordinate the petroleum production and export policies of its oil in half," Boesel said. The NFCBTI is seeking funding via the reauthorization of the federal transportation bill. The reauthorization bill, presently known as TEA-21, determines how gas tax revenues are spent over a six-year period. WestStart-CALSTART and its partners are proposing that an existing program be modified to include a focus on fuel cell and hydrogen bus technology development. Such a redirection would keep the U.S. competitive with efforts already underway globally, including a major European government funded program already deploying 30 hydrogen-fueled buses. WestStart-CALSTART is North America's leading advanced transportation technologies consortium. It is a fuel neutral, participant-supported organization of more than 120 companies and agencies, dedicated to expanding and supporting a high-tech transportation industry that cleans the air, creates jobs and improves energy efficiency. WestStart-CALSTART is actively involved in helping companies develop and deploy clean and efficient drive systems for transit and heavy duty vehicles. Its California operating division does business as CALSTART. Visit www.weststart.org for more information. |
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