New Nova LFSe+ Electric bus will save TransLink around $40,000 in fuel costs annually per bus

The new Nova LFSe+ Electric bus. Photo: TransLink

TRANSLINK is taking another step in electrifying its bus fleet, with the introduction of a new type of battery-electric bus on Thursday.

The new Nova LFSe+ Electric bus is the first of 15 new buses that will more than quadruple TransLink’s battery-electric bus fleet from four to 19 over the next year. These buses will fully electrify Route 100 (22nd Street Station / Marpole Loop).

The new Nova LFSe+ Electric bus:

  • Can travel 150 kilometres on a single charge
  • Can be topped up by on-route overhead chargers in approximately five minutes
  • Will save TransLink around $40,000 in fuel costs annually per bus
  • Will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by over 1,000 tonnes annually once all 15 buses are in operation

This expansion is a critical step towards achieving climate targets outlined in TransLink’s Climate Action Strategy and Transport 2050: 10-Year Priorities. Some of these targets include adding more than 400 new battery-electric buses by 2030, transitioning to a zero-emission bus fleet by 2040, and having net-zero greenhouse gas emissions in all operations by 2050.

Over the coming months, TransLink will order more battery-electric buses as well as the necessary charging infrastructure to support them on more routes.

This $16 million investment towards 15 new battery-electric buses has come from the Canada Community–Building Fund, which is administered in British Columbia by the Union of B.C. Municipalities. The Government of Canada and the Government of British Columbia have committed to supporting the future electrification of TransLink’s fleet through significant investments in TransLink’s 2022 Investment Plan.

Quick Facts:

  • TransLink’s battery-electric buses, trolleybuses, and SkyTrains are all fully-electric vehicles.
  • More than half of TransLink’s bus fleet uses technology cleaner than diesel – including fully-electric buses, hybrid diesel-electric buses, and renewable natural gas-fuelled buses.
    • With 262 fully-electric trolleybuses, TransLink has the second largest fleet of trolleybuses in Canada and the US.

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