Posted on 11/04/2022 9:52:13 PM PDT by ChildOfThe60s
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- From his TARC stop at Broadway and 10th street to GE Building No. 5, Lanice Malone Jr. said it takes 45 minutes to get to work each day on the bus. Friday was even worse.
"This bus is already late, so I'm probably going to get to work late," Malone said Friday.
But it's not the late bus that bothered him most Friday. It was the busses he no longer sees on the road.
Louisville is one of several cities that purchased first-generation Proterra electric busses, but TARC later idled the fleet. It spent $9 million on nine electric busses, and they haven't moved in more than two years.
"That just sucks," Malone said while looking at pictures of the busses parked in a TARC garage. "Sitting, and you can literally tell with all the dust."
Carrie Butler, executive director of TARC said the buses can only work on shorter distances with charging stations located mid-route. So they couldn't be placed in service in other places. Also, the cleaner, greener models had mechanical issues.
"The route those buses were on — the Lou Lift route — was suspended during COVID, when downtown employees shifted to remote work," she said. "Any time there's a new technology in that first generation, we will see some problems."
Louisville joins several cities — including Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Reno, Nevada, and Stockton, California — that purchased early-model Proterra electric buses and later idled the fleet.
In a written statement Friday, Proterra said, "With every first-generation technology, performance challenges and bumps in the road are expected and we work diligently with our customers to help resolve issues as they arise."
The union representing the agency's bus drivers and maintenance workers said it goes beyond manufacturing.
"When you purchase busses and you don't factor in the training and safety and the cost of parts, that is the problem," said Lillian Brents, president of ATU Local 1447, which represents rank-and-file TARC workers.
The news of TARC's parked electric bus fleet comes amid contentious contract negotiations. TARC and the union are at odds over wages, working conditions and other considerations. As part of a negotiation this week, TARC said it made a verbal offer to the union that included "a commitment to jointly explore additional long-term operational funding needed for TARC to maintain a strong workforce and expand service, which may include a ballot referendum for the community to decide."
"Operationally, things are not good with TARC right now," Metro Council President David James said.
TARC is now considering a tax hike to generate more revenue. A plan calls for 0.2%, of every paycheck in Jefferson County going to TARC.
"I think we're an excellent steward of taxpayer dollars," Butler said. "We've been able to survive on a 50-year-old tax referendum."
In 2021, that percentage generated nearly $64 million.
"I haven't heard a reason TARC should have a tax hike yet ..." James said. "They told me — in order to improve service — they would need more funds. But I have not seen a plan for that."
Malone said his service is not good enough to support a tax increase. On Friday his bus was so late he ended up taking an Uber to work.
Copyright 2022 WDRB Media. All Rights Reserved.
It doesn't matter where you live, if your paycheck comes from a business in Jefferson County you have to pay Jefferson County taxes on your income. Louisville is fixing to elect another leftist, anti-gun mayor to continue running the city into the ground.
It's not a problem, it's part of the overall plan. Sell the new "gotta have" shiny object without mentioning the logistics tail (to keep the cost number lower), then come back for more $$ because "Surely the citizens are smart enough to realize we can't possibly operate the new shiny object without training, parts, maintenance, inspections, blah, blah, blah.
“Louisville is fixing to elect another leftist, anti-gun mayor to continue running the city into the ground.”
Boy, Greenberg is for abortion. I know that from his television commercials. He doesn’t have a clue how to stem Louisville’s record murder rate which is largely about poor family structure but rattles on about “guns”.
Typical government operation.
Whenever the Cardinals need fuel for a bonfire they’re all set.
I’m sick and tired of allowing the to opt piss away money on this crap. Elected officials behave like insipid children with not responsibility, and suffer no consequences for their asinine decisions.
No one told them to never buy the first year production of a shiny new object?
The EV buses were rushed into production without the bugs being worked out and now a tax increase is the answer.
If it were me I would be returning the defective busses, demanding a refund, and firing whoever approved the purchase.
What happened to the ICE busses, you know, the kind that WORK?
A lot of morons calling the shots at TARC. Everyone involved acknowledges there should be expectations of problems with first generation buses. Begs the question when are people going to jail for the kickbacks that undoubtedly went down after making the decision to buy buses that they knew would be problematic.
Im sure he will also continue Fischer’s attempts to circumvent the state’s preemption laws on 2 A rights.
Icannot wait to get out of Jefferson county.
Electric buses/trolleys used to work great when they had overhead wires.
This wireless stuff is totally not-so-much.
Interesting history of Proterra. To early(for me) to dig into it deeply.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proterra_(bus_manufacturer)
Works so well the giggling idiot VP wants us all to enjoy the steal
What happens when you hire incompetent people with the "correct" world-view.
Spare parts? Training? I though we just plugged 'em in and they ran forever.
Please donate to Free Republic everyone. Monthly is good. Even $10 / month is a “yuge” help to Jim and Chris.
We all need FR to spread the truth. I love no ads and no pop-ups.
Spread this message please.
PS: Vote red on Tuesday
“After spending millions, TARC’s downtown Louisville electric bus fleet sits idle”
Solyndra on wheels
Because your voting compadres keep electing the same trash to office that causes the problem.
The elected act like there are no consequences because there aren’t any.
“You pissed? Don’t care, peon.”
I too am sick and tired. But the same thing happens here. And I am aghast at the sheer mindnumb willful ignorance that keeps voting for the same idiots over and over.
The article say TRAC spent $9M on the 9 buses. I have to wonder if that $9M was actually grant money from the state or the feds. If they took grant money, it might be hard to get rid of the buses..
PA and NYS were recently gifted by Deep State with EV school buses.
Can’t wait to see how that works out, especially this winter.
Meanwhile, thanks to Deep State’s vaxx mandate there’s a shortage of drivers.
Wonder if there is in Louisville, too...
When you are at war, you give your pilots a new generation technology type of bomber like the B-29 in WWII that was full of teething problems and had engines that routinely caught on fire.
But you do that because war is desperate and dangerous, and you take risks, even with first generation technology. So your planners and politicians make that decision, and the risk is often worth the benefit.
When you are buying busses to transport taxpayers from point A to point B, there should be only three things for responsible and competent planners and politicians to consider:
They purchased unsafe, unreliable, non-performing vehicles, at a pocket gouging price to the taxpayers.
It just burns me up.
My brain damaged Leftist town in the bluest of blue states passed an ordinance requiring ALL discussions on ANY subject in town meetings to introduce "Climate Change Considerations" as a mandatory component of those discussions.
It made me spitting mad. I went to the annual town hall meeting, and when I had the opportunity I said I wanted my local government to spend their time talking about fixing the roads, delivering clean water, and picking up the trash effectively, not blathering a single syllable on climate change.
People after me said that people like me were selfish, and we had to do this "for the children".
These people can all go pound sand.
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