Chapel Hill Transit announced that they will once again use electric buses after performing safety inspections on each in response to a fire on a parked bus last December.
Transit temporarily removed all electric buses from service after one caught on fire at the Transit lot on Millhouse Road. The system said in a statement Thursday that it will return seven out of the 10 total electric buses to service. This does not include the bus that caught fire. The town said it was the first time one of Chapel Hill Transit’s electric buses has ever caught fire.
Chapel Hill Transit Director Brian Litchfield said he’s confident that the returning buses are safe.
“In the last few weeks, the seven buses we’re returning to service have undergone thorough and rigorous safety inspections by both our team and their manufacturer,” said Litchfield. “I promised our team that we would not return these buses to service until they were safe for my family to ride on and safe for our team and customers. With the finalization of the additional safety inspections, I’m confident that these buses are ready to roll again.”
The Chapel Hill Fire Department says that the fire was caused by the bus’ battery. The seven buses returning to service feature batteries from a different manufacturer. The three that will remain out of service utilize the same battery as the bus that caught fire.
The zero-emission buses were made by Gillig LLC, who also made most of the Chapel Hill’s gas dependent fleet. The company is covering the cost of a third-party investigation into the cause of the fire. They also agreed to replace the damaged bus at no cost to the town. The bus that caught fire has been fully removed from service.
You can find more from Chapel Hill Transit, including routes and schedules, on their website.
Featured image via Brian Litchfield/Chapel Hill Transit.
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