MTA reveals new electric buses, charging stations in Queens

NEW YORK (PIX11) -- Some new buses are charging ahead on the streets of New York. New York City Transit said the buses will be in areas with poor air quality.

Diesel-powered buses currently run on most of the 300 routes. Sixty new electric buses are ready to roll from the Maspeth depot. 

Sunil Nair is the NYC Transit Vice President of Bus Technology and Clean Energy.

"It's definitely going to change the air quality across multiple depots and multiple routes," Nair said.

The front display said “charging,” and this is how they powered up the new electric buses. Sixty new buses will arrive this year and 200 next year. 

The MTA is adding the new electric buses on Queens, Brooklyn, and Staten Island routes in areas with air quality issues. 

"Queens residents have long commutes. Inhaling diesel is not good for health. To able to have a fleet rolling through the neighborhoods to lessen pollution is a win for the future and a win in a big way," said Queens Borough President Donovan Richards

The depots must be fitted with charging stations, and there must be enough power to charge the electric buses. 

Con Edison and the New York Power Authority are partners in building the infrastructure and the supply.

"A bus depot goes from looking like a warehouse to the grid to looking like a skyscraper. It takes so much energy to charge overnight," said New York Power Authority Senior Director for E-Mobility John Markowitz. 

In 2019, the MTA issued the first order for electric buses. The agency is planning to have an electric fleet by 2040.