Driving environmental change

Cap Metro charges forward with mass purchase of 200 battery-powered buses for Austin

The electric buses start hitting Austin roads next year.

Courtesy of New Flyer of America

Nearly 200 buses powered by electricity will soon hit the streets of Austin.

The board of Austin’s Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which operates the city’s public transit system, voted September 27 to spend $255 million on 197 new battery-powered electric buses for its fleet. Cap Metro says it’s the largest-ever purchase of electric buses in the U.S.

Many of the new buses, being made by New Flyer of America and Proterra, will replace regular Cap Metro buses. Cap Metro plans to transition its more than 400 diesel-powered buses to battery-powered buses by 2035. The agency already is using 12 electric buses.

The first of the 197 electric buses are supposed to be traveling on Austin roadways in 2022. The vehicles will be delivered over a five-year period.

“Using zero-emissions  buses adds to the quality of life of the Austin community,” City Council Member Pio Renteria says in a Cap Metro news release. “Once these buses are in service, they will be used for new bus routes in underserved areas of East Austin. They will also be critical for providing the area’s residents convenient access to work, healthcare, educational, and recreational opportunities.”

Cap Metro says the electric buses will cut greenhouse gas emissions by about 115 tons a year. Transportation accounts for an estimated 36 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in Austin.

Aside from zero-emission features, the buses will include USB charging ports, plug-in and overhead charging, and an open seating plan.

In a September 29 news release, Mac Dressman, transportation associate at public interest nonprofit U.S. PIRG, applauds Cap Metro’s order for nearly 200 electric buses.

“Austin’s investment in a clean, zero-emission future shows that the city is serious about acting on pollution and climate change. Rolling out this many electric buses is a big win for mobility, public health, and the environment in Austin,” Dressman says.

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Self-driving Roller Coaster

More self-driving cars expected to roll out in Austin for 2025

Photo courtesy of Waymo via KVUE

Various brands offering self-driving cars are on-and-off in Austin.

Expect to see more self-driving rideshare vehicles, also known as robotaxis, on Austin roads next year.

Robotaxi company Waymo, which you may have already seen on Austin's roads, is partnering with Uber. At some point next year, customers will be able to use the Uber app to call a self-driving ride.

Austin-based company Avride is in the testing phase and plans to roll out its robotaxis next year.

Currently, Volkswagen ADMT and Amazon's Zoox are in the testing phase in Austin, while Hyundai's Motional is in the mapping phase.

Last year, robotaxi company Cruise paused operations in Austin after the California Department of Motor Vehicles revoked the company's permits to operate driverless vehicles in the state. And last week, General Motors said it would no longer fund the company because of the time and resources needed.

This way of getting around has come with its safety concerns and issues. The city is tracking those concerns. According to the Transportation Department, the problems span from blocking the roads and parking in front of people's homes for weeks with lights beaming through their windows, to actual wrecks.

Since July 2023, robotaxis have been involved in 75 incidents. Only 21 of those incidents happened in 2024. It's important to note that Cruise has not been operating in Austin this year.

Since July 2023, driverless rideshare vehicles have been involved in 22 near collisions, eight collisions and seven instances where driverless taxis ignored directions from the Austin Police Department (APD).

According to the data, at least four of those Austin police incidents happened in recent months. The issues varied from driving through police checkpoints, to malfunctioning and getting stuck at an APD road closure near pedestrians, causing safety concerns.

A Waymo spokesperson said their vehicles have gesture recognition capabilities, which they've been training APD officers on using.

As the report shows, sometimes it does not work and Waymo said it is working to improve that. The spokesperson said that as of just last week, Waymo's First Responder Program has been independently verified by TÜV SÜD, making Waymo the first autonomous vehicle (AV) company to receive third-party validation for our emergency response protocols. They also said the data to date indicates the Waymo Driver is already reducing traffic injuries and fatalities in the places where the company currently operates.

Read the full story and watch the video at KVUE.com.

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