QuickTake:

The electric buses will become LA Metro’s responsibility. That agency plans to put them in service for the 2028 Summer Olympic Games.

LA Metro, the transit agency for Los Angeles County, has approved a deal to acquire 19 of Lane Transit District’s 30 battery-electric buses.

Beginning in 2019, when LTD acquired the electric buses, the fleet was riddled with problems. Their manufacturer, New Flyer, issued recall orders due to threats of battery fires. The buses had a limited range and on cold days — with mileage reduced by as much as half. On other days, long battery repair times caused nearly the entire fleet to be inoperable.

The 19 buses being transferred to Los Angeles remain under recall from New Flyer. The agency cannot charge them to more than 75% capacity, or they risk a “thermal event” such as a fire. The buses need battery replacements, which New Flyer will pay for, but the process can take 18 to 24 months. 

With this new deal, however, LTD has a way out. LA Metro, which approved the deal Thursday, Feb. 26, will take on the buses’ transfer costs and the remaining federal debt, $464,956 per bus. The fleet will become part of the 2,800 buses needed for the 2028 Olympics.

LTD purchased the fleet with a mix of federal loans and local dollars. LTD deputy CEO Mike Hursh said the local dollars spent on the buses have been essentially recouped as part of a clean fuels program. By using electric vehicles, LTD received clean energy credits from the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, which it later resold. 

“This is really a win-win for both agencies,” Hursh said. “We’ve got our local dollars out of them; Los Angeles Metro is assuming the federal interest and has the operating environment where they’ll be able to use them for much more productive public transit.”

With the transfer, LTD will have 11 remaining electric buses that will run for an additional six years.

“These buses faced persistent battery and reliability issues, and our riders deserve vehicles they can count on,” Susan Cox, LTD board president, wrote in a statement. “The most powerful climate action we can take today is delivering frequent, dependable service that gets more people on the bus, because full buses remain one of the most effective ways to reduce emissions.”

LTD anticipates transferring the buses later this year, subject to final approval from the Federal Transit Administration and the availability of transport vehicles.