This Electric Bus Will Drive Americans 600 Miles on One Charge
While the Toyota Prius has been pulling into Whole Foods parking lots since 1997, other prominent electric vehicle producers — such as Tesla and Faraday Future — make hifalutin cars that haul ass, cost too much money, and look like the Batmobile. But electric busses for the masses? Surely that’s just a fantasy schemed up by Elon Musk, right? Wrong.
Enter the Catalyst E2, a hulking city bus that burns zero carbon and can travel up to 600 miles on a single charge. It’s made by EV manufacturer Proterra, and has been testing its capabilities at the Michelin proving grounds in South Carolina -- waiting, hopefully, to hit the streets of your local city and take you to the disco.
The bus is a marvel of efficiency. The company notes that the 600 mile range isn’t necessarily possible in normal conditions—there are too many variables in a city bus’ normal daily route—but claims that its nominal range of 194 to 350 miles per charge allows the E2 to cover most American mass transit routes on a single charge. So if you live in Philly, Charlotte, Hong Kong or anywhere on planet earth, the E2 will most likely work for your city.
Proterra CEO Ryan Popple in a statement that burning carbon is bad, and that converting to a sustainable future is not a question of if, but when. “The question is no longer who will be an early adopter of this technology, but rather who will be the last to commit to a future of clean, efficient, and sustainable mobility."
"With the Catalyst E2 offering a no-compromise replacement for all fossil fuel buses, battery-electric vehicles have now broken down the final barrier to widespread market adoption."
You heard the man, America! A spokesperson notes that Proterra will begin supplying the bus in Southern California next spring, but in the meantime, petition your local city councilperson to adopt this technology, or be prepared to reap the consequences.
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Sam Blum is a Staff Writer at Thrillist and thinks electric vehicles are great. He tweets @Blumnessmonster.