RACINE, Wis. — The City of Racine rolled out its new fleet of electric buses on Wednesday. The city now has nine new electric buses, making it the largest electric fleet in Wisconsin.
According to the city's transit department, 25% of Racine's bus fleet is now electrified. The City of Racine received $6,190,906 from the Wisconsin Department of Administration's Volkswagen Transit Capital Assistance Grant Program to fund the purchase of six electric buses and related infrastructure.
Additionally, the city was awarded $3,183,723 from the U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Transit Authority (FTA) Low or No Emission Vehicle Program (“Low-No Program”) to buy three additional electric buses, bringing the total to nine.
Racine was the only city in the state to receive this allocation, and one of only 41 other transit jurisdictions nationwide to receive this funding.
Gov. Tony Evers and residents were some of the first to ride on the bus. Gov. Evers said he sees this as the future of public transportation across the state.
“The more we can electrify our fleets and buses and individual cars, the more we will be able to say gasoline is not the be-all-end-all from us to get from point A to point B," Gov. Evers said. "This is a step in the right direction."
Kiran Vedak has worked in Racine for nine years. He said he prefers the electric buses over diesel, because they are more quiet and better for the environment.
“It’s a great move, good for the environment and next generations,” said Vedak.
