The first battery-electric buses to be assembled at BYD (Build Your Dreams) Canada's facility in Newmarket are on their way to Quebec.
By the end of the month, five of the electric zero-emission buses will be delivered to the Réseau de Transport de Longueuil (RTL), one of the largest public transit systems in Canada with an annual ridership of more than 30 million.
The first of the BYD 30-foot K7M buses were loaded onto a flat-bed trailer Monday at its 45,000-square-foot facility on Harry Walker Parkway North.
The BYD buses are part of a pilot project for RTL facilitated by funding from the federal and provincial governments through the Public Transit Infrastructure Fund, according to a BYD news release.
The five zero-emission buses represent the first step in RTL’s plan to electrify its entire network as part of its commitment to sustainability.
“We are excited to put buses from our Newmarket, Ontario facility into service in Longueuil,” said BYD president Stella Li. “We are glad to be partners with RTL in their efforts to serve their community by lowering their carbon footprint.”
“It’s our sincere hope that this is just the start of a long and fruitful relationship,” BYD Canada vice-president Ted Dowling said. “We are glad to work with RTL, whose commitment to sustainability and the well-being of residents in Longueuil matches our commitment to innovating zero-emission vehicle technology.”
The Réseau de Transport de Longueuil is one of several customers in Canada purchasing zero-emission, battery-electric buses from BYD.
BYD is the world’s leading electric vehicle company with innovative technology for cars, buses, trucks, forklifts, and rail systems, including SkyRail.
BYD, which opened the first electric bus assembly facility in Canada last summer in Newmarket, is dedicated to creating technology for solar electricity generation, energy storage to save that electricity, and battery-electric vehicles. BYD has 220,000 employees across the globe, including nearly 1,000 in North America.
