A 40-foot (12.19-meter) electric bus from Proterra Inc. traveled recently 1,101.2 miles (1,772.21 km) at low speed without recharging, cruising to a new electric vehicle range record, the California manufacturer said on Tuesday.
Proterra developed the battery for its bus with Korea’s LG Chem Ltd. The bus maker has begun assembling battery packs at a new factory in Burlingame, California. It sold 190 buses last year and is on track to “far exceed” that this year.
The Catalyst E2 Battery Series enables a direct replacement of diesel, CNG and hybrid buses, establishing a new, high-performance category. Vehicles with the E2 battery configuration can accommodate the toughest routes with highest daily mileage, without charging on-route. E2 battery configurations can be fully charged at the depot with industry standard J1772 CCS plug-in chargers.
The Proterra bus body is also much lighter than its steel counterparts, enabling the Catalyst to be the lightest-weight vehicle in its class, Proterra claims. This minimizes the wear-and-tear of public roads and maximizes vehicle performance. A high power-to-weight ratio contributes to the best acceleration in the transit bus market—from zero to 20 mph in less than seven seconds.
