First Battery-Electric NJ Transit Bus Unveiled In Camden

CAMDEN, NJ — The first battery-powered NJ Transit bus will begin routes in Camden soon, as the transportation authority seeks to be more sustainable and reduce emissions into New Jersey communities.

Local, state, and county officials gathered in Camden on Tuesday to introduce the fleet's first of eight battery electric buses, which will begin traveling specific NJ Transit routes.

This bus will be used for operator training and first responder training, and will begin carrying passengers around Camden in the coming weeks, a news release said. The bus will operate from the Newton Avenue Bus Garage, said Camden Mayor Victor Carstarphen.

A clean bus fleet will improve air quality in communities while also reducing fuel emissions, said Congressman Donald Norcross (D-NJ-1) and Commissioner of Environmental Protection Shawn M. LaTourette in a news release.

“Accessible and reliable public transportation is critical to our continued progress in Camden City and statewide,” Norcross said. “The unprecedented federal investments in New Jersey’s transition to clean energy – from charging infrastructure to zero-emission buses – is unlocking economic growth, improving the quality of our air, reducing congestion in our downtowns, and ensuring every South Jersey resident can get where they need to go.”

The transit authority's board of directors awarded a $3.2 million contract to Scalfo Electric of Vineland to renovate the Newton Avenue Bus Garage with electric vehicle charging stations and other associated infrastructure modifications, the news release said. Officials unveiled the eight new charging stations in March 2022.

Officials celebrated it as a major milestone for the nation's largest statewide transit provider. The addition of this bus also aligns with Governor Phil Murphy's Energy Master Plan, calling for all buses in the fleet to be zero-emission by 2040.

NJ Transit has a $9.4 million contract with New Flyer of America for the purchase of eight 40-foot battery electric buses, the news release says.

"This will provide invaluable data and information on the effects of weather, passenger volume, road conditions and other factors on electric bus performance, including travel distance available between recharging," officials said. "The project will also review the infrastructure resources and work required to modernize NJ TRANSIT’s bus garages to accept new charging stations, and the significantly greater power feeds needed to energize them."

Next on NJ Transit's list of modernization is the Newark area, specifically in Maplewood.

Murphy signed legislation in January 2020, establishing goals to increase the use of zero-emission vehicles in the Garden State. Under this plan, at least 10 percent of new bus purchases will be zero-emission buses by the end of 2024. By the end of 2026, it will be at least 50 percent of purchases, and the plan calls for 100 percent of new bus purchases to be zero-emission by the end of 2032.