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Hybrid bus begins trial rides in Lee County

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LeeTran is testing a state-of-the-art hybrid paratransit bus for four weeks. The test rides started Monday, April 27.

The 31-foot “Hybrid Ride” diesel-electric bus is provided by the Florida Department of Transportation as a demonstration project. It is on loan to transit agencies for testing in a variety of operating environments to gather data on fuel savings and maintenance costs for the state.

Hybrid Ride has the potential to reduce particulate matter up to 90 percent, and NOx emissions by up to 60 percent, compared to a regular diesel bus. Depending on the operating conditions, Hybrid Ride can improve fuel economy by 25 to 40 percent.

“LeeTran has four full-size hybrid buses on order, and this will give us an advance look at the new technology in smaller size vehicles,” said Transit Director Steve Myers. “Hybrid Ride is designed primarily for paratransit service, but we’ll also be testing it on a few of our regular bus routes to gather as much data as possible for the state.”

Hybrid Ride was built by Champion on an International chassis with 26 seats, two wheelchair positions and a wheelchair lift.