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Visalia California, March 03, 2002: Now that conserving energy and reducing pollution have become such pressing issues in California, the City of Visalia is hoping to be the nation's first downtown to utilize a new type of cleaner burning, more efficient and cost effective electric hybrid trolley. The new electric hybrid trolley, which has been engineered and manufactured by Capstone and E-bus, is the first electric trolley of its kind. The main advantage of the new trolley, which is recharged by a diesel powered turbine engine, is that it performs well in extreme climates and can run continuously throughout the day without needing to be recharged. "We have worked with E-bus and Capstone to develop a vehicle that addresses the limiting aspects of other electric vehicles such as range," said Visalia's transit manager, Monty Cox. "Other electric buses that run on electric batteries have to be recharged at least once to make it through an entire day. Ours can go up to 26 hours before recharging or refueling". Three of these new electric hybrid trolleys are expected to go into service in mid-March. A few of Visalia's existing diesel powered trolleys will remain as back ups. The new trolleys are 22-feet long and work best at speeds limited to 45 mph.
"The new electric trolleys operate on batteries recharged as needed by the turbine engine. When the batteries go down and reach a certain level, a computer triggers the turbine and the engine comes on to recharge the battery, independent of the driver," Cox said. This means that the electric trolley operates continuously without the driver having to make special stops to recharge the trolley. The new trolleys should help the City of Visalia significantly reduce pollution in the downtown area. The diesel-powered turbines are 75 percent cleaner than the highest rated state certified bus and truck diesel engines. "These trolleys with the batteries and the diesel-powered turbines are cleaner running vehicles than any of the existing compressed natural gas or diesel engines on the road," Cox said. Up until now, electric trolleys have mostly only faired well in milder climates, such as Santa Barbara. But the new trolley's special liquid coolant system should enable the trolley to work well during Visalia's hot summer days which can often exceed 100 degrees Fahrenheit. "This liquid cooled process was something that was created just for us because we have such a range of temperatures here," Cox said. In addition to reducing pollution the new trolleys are also designed with a lower floor to accommodate elderly and disabled riders. Total cost of the trolleys was $260,000, each, Cox said. Congestion Mitigation Air Quality, a federally funded program, covered Eighty-eight percent of the cost of the trolleys. The rest of the money came from the Transportation Development Act, a local transportation fund derived from county sales tax. Digital photos and video available upon request. |
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