Nebraska’s StarTran drives sustainability forward with 10 electric buses from New Flyer; celebrates arrival of first zero-emission bus to Lincoln

ST. CLOUD, MN, Feb. 27, 2020 /CNW/ - (TSX: NFI) New Flyer of America Inc. ("New Flyer"), a subsidiary of NFI Group Inc. ("NFI"), one of the world's leading independent global bus manufacturers, today announced that the City of Lincoln Transportation and Utilities, operating as StarTran Bus Service ("StarTran") has purchased ten battery-electric, thirty five-foot Xcelsior CHARGE™ heavy-duty transit buses from New Flyer.

The zero-emission bus purchase furthers the city's commitment to sustainability through greenhouse gas reduction in public transit, and is comprised of two orders, both supported with Federal Transit Administration ("FTA") Low or No-Emission funding. A $1.45 million federal grant in 2017 supported the city's purchase of its first four electric buses, while a $2.6 million federal grant in 2019 supported the replacement of six older diesel buses with new electric models.

Each bus is estimated to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 100-160 tons per year, compared to a traditional clean diesel bus.

Lincoln Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird today celebrated the arrival of the first bus alongside StarTran Transit Manager Mike Davis and Donna Garden, Assistant Director of Utilities with Lincoln Transportation and Utilities. The first Xcelsior CHARGE™ bus was unveiled while Mayor Gaylor Baird updated media on the city's latest sustainability accomplishments.

"A major part of my administration's Resilient Lincoln initiative is to ensure that our city is building a climate smart future," said Mayor Gaylor Baird. "It is now more important than ever before to take action locally to protect our environment for future generations."

"StarTran has been an outstanding sustainability leader in the Midwestern U.S. for the better part of a decade," said Chris Stoddart, President, New Flyer. "Through the adoption of low-emission CNG buses, followed by zero-emission, it has set the pace for building a more livable community through reduced emissions and renewable energy initiatives. Today, we celebrate another milestone achieved for the City of Lincoln."

New Flyer has delivered nearly 30 buses to StarTran since 2014, beginning with compressed natural gas buses and recently adding zero-emission Xcelsior CHARGE™ buses to the StarTran fleet.

"We're thrilled to welcome the arrival of our first zero-emission bus to StarTran," said Mike Davis, Transit Manager with StarTran. "We have counted on New Flyer buses for several years, first with low-emission CNG buses and now with the battery-electric Xcelsior CHARGE. We look forward to depending on the same reliability, efficiency, and fully-accessible mobility we've come to expect from New Flyer; but can now take even greater pride knowing our community has a better quality of life with cleaner, quieter public transit."

StarTran is the public transit bus system in Lincoln, Nebraska, and is the only mass transit carrier in the city of Lincoln, supporting over 2 million rides per year. In 2019, StarTran saw the largest ridership increase in among urban transit systems in the state of Nebraska, as reported by the FTA. StarTran has been nationally acknowledged as a leader in the utilization and promotion of alternative fuels, with fuel program including CNG, biodiesel, and ethanol.

Built on the proven Xcelsior^® platform, New Flyer manufactures the zero-emission Xcelsior CHARGE™ bus in 35, 40, and 60-foot lengths. For more information, visit newflyer.com/charge.

New Flyer has been manufacturing zero-emission buses for more than 50 years, with more electric buses on the road in America than any other bus manufacturer. With nearly 90 years of experience in manufacturing, New Flyer today supports growing North American cities with sustainable buses, technology, and infrastructure. It also operates the Vehicle Innovation Center, the first and only innovation lab of its kind dedicated to advancing bus technology and providing essential workforce development through electric bus training. New Flyer was the first bus manufacturer in the world to sign on to the Shared Mobility Principles for Livable Cities, and is currently developing automated bus technology to improve safety in public transit.

About NFI

With 9,000 team members operating from more than 50 facilities across ten countries, NFI is a leading independent global bus manufacturer providing a comprehensive suite of mass transportation solutions under brands: New Flyer^® (heavy-duty transit buses), Alexander Dennis Limited (single and double-deck buses), Plaxton (motor coaches), MCI^® (motor coaches), ARBOC^® (low-floor cutaway and medium-duty buses), and NFI Parts™. NFI buses and motor coaches incorporate the widest range of drive systems available including: clean diesel, natural gas, diesel-electric hybrid, and zero-emission electric (trolley, battery, and fuel cell).  In total, NFI now supports over 105,000 buses and coaches currently in service around the world. NFI common shares are traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol NFI. News and information are available at www.nfigroup.com, www.newflyer.com, www.mcicoach.com, www.arbocsv.com, www.alexander-dennis.com, and www.nfi.parts.

About New Flyer

New Flyer is North America's heavy-duty transit bus leader and offers the most advanced product line under the Xcelsior^® and Xcelsior CHARGE™ brands. It also offers infrastructure development through New Flyer Infrastructure Solutions™, a service dedicated to providing safe, sustainable, and reliable charging and mobility solutions. New Flyer actively supports over 41,000 heavy-duty transit buses (New Flyer, NABI, and Orion) currently in service, of which 7,300 are powered by electric motors and battery propulsion and 1,600 are zero-emission. Further information is available at www.newflyer.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release may contain forward-looking statements relating to expected future events and financial and operating results of NFI Group that involve risks and uncertainties. Although the forward-looking statements contained in this press release are based upon what management believes to be reasonable assumptions, investors cannot be assured that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements, and the differences may be material. Actual results may differ materially from management expectations as projected in such forward-looking statements for a variety of reasons, including market and general economic conditions and economic conditions of and funding availability for customers to purchase buses and to purchase parts or services, customers may not exercise options to purchase additional buses, the ability of customers to suspend or terminate contracts for convenience and the other risks and uncertainties discussed in the materials filed with the Canadian securities regulatory authorities and available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Due to the potential impact of these factors, the NFI Group disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless required by applicable law.      

SOURCE New Flyer of America Inc.

View original content to download multimedia: http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/February2020/27/c8330.html