BYD has delivered what it says is America's first 60-foot articulated battery-electric transit bus to the Antelope Valley Transit Authority (AVTA) in Los Angeles County, California.
The bus, part of AVTA's campaign to fully electrify its fleet by 2018, was also built with local labour in BYD's factory in Lancaster and is the first delivery from AVTA's order of 13 60' BYD buses.
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"The Antelope Valley Transit Authority is leading the North American transit market with its electrification commitment and so it's only fitting that they should have the first bus of its kind in North America," said BYD Heavy Industries SVP, Macy Neshati.
"This bus runs longer and holds more passengers than any other commercially available battery-electric bus and I know it will serve the people of the Antelope Valley well.
The 60-foot BYD bus seats up to 60 people and provides a range of 200 miles on a single charge with full power completed in two to three hours. It will join the rest of the AVTA fleet in serving the half million residents of northern Los Angeles County.
Nearly 600 Californians are employed at the BYD factory in Lancaster. Workers there recently completed a card-check vote, an important step towards unionisation.
