A city bus stops downtown to pick up passengers in this September 2017 file photo. Provincial municipalities is considering asking Ottawa for a more cost-friendly timeline when it comes to net-zero transit fleets.--NEWS FILE PHOTO
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Alberta’s cities will consider asking the federal government to restore grants to buy diesel and compressed natural gas buses, stating the timeline to go “net zero” in transit fleets is too tight and expenses are too much at the moment.
That comes as the City of Medicine Hat has launched a federally-funded study on the economics of converting its fleet of transit vehicles to run on electricity or hydrogen fuel cells.
This week, a resolution at the 2024 Alberta Munis conference will ask towns and cities to lobby to loosen new restrictions on bus replacement money from Ottawa that could see them continue to buy new diesel or CNG models to replace older models that are taken out of service.
Local transit officials told the News on Monday that Medicine Hat currently has traditional models on order, and plans to order six more full-length CNG or diesel models over the next two-year budget cycle.
That $8-million cost would be offset by $2.7 million in federal funds announced last June, which is tied to environmental goals (the application was submitted in a 2020 funding round).
But, administrators in other cities say conditions on new grants require models that are carbon neutral despite cost escalation and scarcity concerns.
“Transitioning to zero-emission transit is a laudable goal,” reads a background memo on the resolution. “However, the timetable is too short for municipalities to transition without significant challenges that will be borne by their residents and taxpayers.”
The annual fall convention of Alberta Munis, the lobbying association of Alberta’s urban towns and cities, takes place Sept. 25-27 in Red Deer.
The host City of Red Deer is sponsoring the resolution regarding bus replacement that is seconded by the Town of Innisfail.
It also states infrastructure, like fuelling facilities, is largely unbuilt.
Medicine Hat switched most of its buses and some other high-milage vehicles, like garbage trucks, over to CNG in 2015, including millions for a fuelling station and garage upgrades. The cost premium over a diesel engine was $50,000 at the time, but fuel price differences led to annual savings of $500,000 per year over the entire fleet.
Today, reads the resolution, CNG or diesel buses cost about $850,000 each, while electric or hydrogen models cost between $1.5 million and $2 million.
This “forces even more difficult choices between service levels and taxpayer supported costs,” reads the resolution. “The reality is that fewer people will be able to access public transit if transitional funding of CNG and clean diesel buses is not restored.”
North America’s two major bus manufacturers are now determining future production options, and one, Nova, has said it will stop offering diesel models in the next few years.
Last month the federal government announced it will pay most of the cost of a local study to determine a timeline for Medicine Hat’s conversion to a net-zero bus fleet.
The crucial question, according to the Canadian Urban Transit Research and Innovation Consortium, which is leading the local study, is how electric or hydrogen would perform in Medicine Hat-specific typography, routes and weather.
Refuelling needs and range could require having more replacement buses on hand to keep service flowing smoothly. Ottawa will pay $158,500 toward the study, and the city $39,600.
Policy options
Many of the resolutions, if passed, would only set lobbying positions and priorities when municipalities engage other levels of government.
A key resolution asks that the province develop an independent office of integrity for local government. That is being proposed by the towns of Rocky Mountain House, Sylvan Lake and Legal.
Medicine Hat is not the mover or seconder of any of the 27 proposed resolutions.
Among other major resolutions set to be debated this week include:
– Reversing a new policy to bar electronic vote counting machines in municipal elections set for October 2025;
– Requesting the extension of municipal voting rights to permanent residents;
– A request to double speeding fines in playground and school zones;
-Developing a provincial emergency shelter strategy;
– Education property tax reform.
About 1,100 delegates are expected to take part in the plenary session, other sessions and related trade show and convention.
