BYD Canada announced Tuesday that ten zero-emission, 40-foot K9M battery-electric buses will be put into service by the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC), in Toronto, Ontario. TTC is Canada’s largest and North America’s third largest transit operator.
This is an important milestone for the city, for the province and for BYD and we can’t wait for Torontonians to see what BYD’s combination of best-in-class technology, and Canadian know-how can deliver for their city,” BYD Canada Vice President Ted Dowling said.
We know of course that this moment, this kind of innovation, doesn’t just happen – it takes leadership and real champions at the table to make it work. On behalf BYD, I’d like to thank Mayor John Tory, Minister Catherine McKenna, TTC Chair Jaye Robinson and CEO Rick Leary and of course Councilor Denzil Minnan-Wong for their strong commitment to a clean, green future for Toronto, and their investment in good, Canadian jobs to get it done”.
This is a significant a milestone for BYD, as these ten buses are the first to hit the road from BYD’s 45,000-square-foot assembly facility in Newmarket, Ontario; the first new electric bus plant to open in the province in a generation. The assembly of these buses created 30 jobs and are the first buses built in Ontario since Orion closed its plant in 2012.
Beyond the jobs they create, these ten buses delivered to Toronto will help remove nearly 8400 metric tonnes of GHG from the atmosphere over their lifetime –just imagine what we could do with more. We’re proud to be a partner in helping make Toronto’s vision of an emissions free transit system– and we look forward to continuing this wonderful partnership for many years to come,” continued Dowling.
The Toronto Transit Commission is one of several customers in Canada purchasing zero-emission, battery-electric BYD buses. This order represents a significant advance toward TTC’s goal of purchasing all emission-free buses beginning in 2025 and completing a fleet conversion by 2040. Each of these new buses will remove approximately 9 Metric tons of nitrogen oxides, 159 kilograms of diesel particulate matter, and approximately 1,530 Metric tons of CO₂ from the atmosphere over the 12-year lifecycle of the vehicle.
Image and press courtesy of BYD
The Forth Revolution also reported that the Toronto Transit Commission is now operating the largest electric bus fleet in North America.
Public transit allows Canadians to get around in cheaper, cleaner and faster ways,” said Catherine McKenna, minister of infrastructure and communities. “Our government’s investment in the TTC’s electric bus pilot program is a sign of our commitment to made-in-Canada clean technology and an important step toward our target of 5,000 electric buses in Canada’s fleets over the next five years. Canada’s Infrastructure plan invests in thousands of projects, creates jobs across the country and builds stronger communities.”
Our eBus fleet is one of the many projects that our City government has jointly funded with the federal government through the federal Public Transit Infrastructure Fund,” Toronto Mayor John Tory said. “I want to thank the Government of Canada for providing this funding that helps keep Toronto residents moving by investing in modernizing, expanding and upgrading our transit and transportation infrastructure. This is the right and responsible thing to do for our transit system, our city, and our environment.”
BYD supported more of the hopeful science, the remarkable transition the buses will remove nearly 8,400 metric tonnes of greenhouse gases from the atmosphere over their lifetime.