The Electric Vehicle Council (EVC) strongly supports the Victorian Government's plan to transition its bus fleet to zero-emission buses (ZEBs) by procuring only ZEBs from 2025. Victoria's ZEB transition is expected to outpace New South Wales, with a target to achieve net-zero emissions by 2045. The EVC highlights that battery electric buses offer the most cost-competitive option, with long-term benefits outweighing initial investment costs.
Key points and recommendations:
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Transitioning Victoria’s Bus Fleet: The EVC supports the government's commitment to transitioning the 4,500-bus fleet, noting that existing ZEB trials and the Metropolitan Bus Franchise contract will provide valuable insights. Battery electric buses have demonstrated cost competitiveness and offer significant environmental and health benefits.
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Infrastructure Needs and Opportunities:
- Energy Requirements: The EVC critiques a high-level power requirement description, suggesting a more detailed analysis is needed to prioritize sites. A figure of 50kW per bus is considered reasonable, with site-level electrical system upgrades often required.
- Prioritizing smaller depots and charging locations: Smaller sites with limited network supply should be prioritized, as transitioning them is easier and can be done in parallel without disrupting operations.
- Medium-size operations: Sites with more than 20 buses should consider connecting as high-voltage customers to gain more options for transformer procurement and deployment.
- Larger sites: For depots supporting more than 100 buses, identifying available land near existing zone substations is recommended to minimize disruption and costs.
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Ensuring Adequate Transition Planning:
- Charger/Bus Compatibility: The EVC emphasizes the need for warranty coverage and service level agreements to ensure equipment failures do not disrupt charging operations.
- Managing Risks of Power Outage: The transition introduces new risks, such as overnight power outages affecting all buses at a depot. Solutions include telemetry monitoring, on-site backup generation, and redundancy in the vehicle fleet.
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Ongoing Information and Data Sharing: Real-time data from on-board loggers and comprehensive training for bus drivers and operators are crucial. Knowledge gained should be shared with smaller private bus and coach services.
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Industry Development: Procurement planning should encourage local manufacturing and assembly of electric bus fleets to foster local jobs and growth. The EVC also recommends exploring second-life applications for ZEB batteries in stationary energy storage systems.
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Upskilling and End-of-Life Considerations: The Victorian government should consider upskilling requirements for bus operators and maintenance staff. Additionally, strategies for the end-of-life phase of the retiring diesel bus fleet should be developed.
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Intergovernmental Coordination and National Electric Vehicle Strategy: Improved coordination among federal, state, and local governments is essential to accelerate the electrification of transport. Harmonisation of regulations across jurisdictions will reduce administrative complexity and provide clarity to consumers.
The EVC concludes by emphasizing the importance of collaboration and strategic planning to ensure a smooth and efficient transition to ZEBs in Victoria.
