GreenPower Motor Company announced a new electric Type D school bus on Tuesday.
The Mega BEAST provides double the range of the company's original BEAST model, it says, delivering 300 miles on a single charge of its 387 kWh battery pack.
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"The all-electric, purpose-built BEAST has established the new standard of performance, safety and sustainability in the school bus market. Today, with the introduction of the Mega BEAST, GreenPower also sets a new industry standard in range and battery size," says Michael Perez, GreenPower vice president of school bus, contracts and grants. "The extended range of the Mega BEAST will help more school districts make the switch from NOx-emitting diesel buses to the GreenPower all-electric, zero-emission option that provides a safer, cleaner and healthier ride for school kids."
The Mega BEAST seats 90 passengers and has features such as air ride suspension, ABS disk breaks and pass-through storage. The company says it also has a modern monocoque chassis with an integrated aluminum body and chassis design GreenPower calls the GreenPower Truss(T) factor.
GreenPower's new bus was unveiled at the National Association of Pupil Transportation's Conference and Trade Show in Columbus, Ohio. It says the extended range battery pack is a solution for rural school districts with longer routes, school districts with less opportunity for mid-day charging, districts that face extreme weather and schools that will use the bus for extracurricular activities.
"Before now, there was not a vehicle on the market that offered these longer-range capabilities," GreenPower President Brendan Riley says. "The Mega BEAST sets a new benchmark in the industry by addressing the needs and filling the gap in the current market where longer-range, all-electric school buses are required."
The Mega BEAST is also ideal for V2G applications, Riley says, where the bus's battery is used as energy storage instead of for transportation.
"V2G is becoming a common-sense tool that helps to create a more reliable grid, promote clean energy and reduce costs," he says. "The larger battery of the Mega BEAST has the ability to provide for a more healthy and stable electric grid and community stability in areas where it is deployed and V2G is used."
Mega BEAST production will begin in 2024.
