As Canada moves toward a low-carbon future, federal investments in electric, hybrid and alternative fuel vehicles continue to increase. The Government of Canada is encouraging widespread adoption of electric vehicles by supporting innovative projects that provide more options to drive clean.
Last week, Joe Peschisolido, Member of Parliament for Steveston—Richmond East, on behalf of the Honourable Jim Carr, Canada's Minister of Natural Resources, announced a $1.2-million investment for the South Coast British Columbia Transportation Authority's (TransLink) demonstration project that will lead to the installation and operation of overhead charging stations for electric buses in Vancouver. TransLink will receive approximately $1.2 million for the charging system to support electric buses.
Canada's two leading bus manufacturers — New Flyer Industries (Manitoba) and Nova Bus (Quebec) — will be developing the electric transit buses while ABB and Siemens are developing the chargers. The project will integrate more than one bus manufacturer and more than one charging system provider to evaluate the interoperability and performance of electric buses and overhead chargers in a Canadian transit setting.
The Government of Canada has invested a total of $182.5 million to support the deployment of electric chargers; natural gas and hydrogen refueling stations; the demonstration of new, innovative charging technologies; and the development of codes and standards.
Through Canada's national energy dialogue, Generation Energy, Canadians made it clear that the transition to energy independence through the combined efforts of federal, provincial and territorial governments is a necessity for advancing toward an energy-friendly future.
