Climate Resilient Battery Electric Fleet Feasibility Assessment for Humboldt County Public Transit

SB1 Adaptation Planning Grant: Final Case Study

 

Brief Summary

Planning the future of public transit in Humboldt County requires integrating targets for a zero emission bus fleet^[1]. Humboldt Transit Authority (HTA) is considering electric buses to meet State goals. Currently there is no clear or consistent methodology on how to best design electric charging infrastructure. This project developed a Climate Risk and Adaptation Report and Electric Charging Infrastructure Report, both of which were compiled into a Climate Resilient Electrified Transit Plan. This Plan enables HTA to understand charging infrastructure requirements and costs while integrating climate adaptation, resiliency, and emergency planning efforts.

Relevant State Policy Goals

• California Innovative Clean Transit Regulation: requires all transit agencies in California to transition to zero emission bus technology.
• EO-S-13-08: Incorporation of sea level rise into transportation infrastructure planning
• EO-B-30-15: Helping the region meet its share of zero emissions vehicle (ZEV) targets
• California Transportation Plan 2040 – Goal 2, Policy 3: This project will identify transit vulnerabilities and adaptation recommendations.
• California ZEV Action Plan: This project helps the State achieve targeted expansion of ZEV transit.

The project couples climate mitigation and adaptation planning in a transit service territory that includes populations with an overall CalEnviroScreen score of 50% - 55%. Furthermore, the transit service area includes transportation disadvantaged regions^[2].

The project period ran from October, 2018 – June, 2020. The key deliverables were a Climate Risk and Adaptation Recommendations Report, an Electric Charging Infrastructure Recommendations Report, and a Climate Resilient Electrified Transit Plan.

Lead Agency and Partnerships

HTA was the lead agency. The lead technical consultant Schatz Energy Research managed the project, lead the development of all deliverables, engaged stakeholders, and managed the three project partners: The Humboldt County Association of Governments (HCAOG), McKeever Energy & Electric Inc., and Redwood Coast Energy Authority.

HCAOG reviewed draft deliverables and provided insight and guidance regarding alignment with County goals and existing plans. McKeever Energy & Electric Inc. provided electrical design and cost estimate support, and reviewed draft deliverables. The Redwood Coast Energy Authority reviewed draft deliverables, and provided insight and guidance regarding alignment with Community Choice Energy goals and existing plans.

Drivers

The primary drivers for this work are the following:

• California Air Resources Board (CARB) Innovative Clean Transit Program. In alignment with State ZEV and clean air goals, CARB proposed requiring all new bus purchases to be zero emission by 2029[3].
• HTA is currently interested in meeting expected zero emissions bus targets with electric buses. HTA received its first electric bus in September, 2018.
• There is little guidance or experience by transit agencies or the industry in planning for charging infrastructure for fixed route fleets. HTA needs technical expertise to guide this planning effort.
• The HTA maintenance yard is located in an area that is threatened by sea level rise. In addition, a large percentage of revenue miles are traveled along roads threatened by sea level rise. Infrastructure supporting inland routes face increased wildfire probability and/or severity. Electrical infrastructure faces resiliency challenges caused by wildfires and associated Public Safety Power Shutoff events.
• The CalTrans Adaptation Planning Grant Program presented a timely funding opportunity for HTA to address these challenges.

Engagement Process

Engagement focused on local government agencies, the local utility, and local and regional transit agencies. While the project deliverables contribute to broader discussions on climate adaptation and transit service impacts, this project did not directly engage the public. Stakeholder engagement involved structured meetings with specific agenda items designed to elicit input that leverages the expertise and experience of the stakeholders.

Climate Impact Area

The recommendations for electric bus charging infrastructure help HTA and stakeholders plan to reduce greenhouse gases through the use of electric buses. Both sea level rise and wildfire are projected to directly impact service routes and infrastructure that supports transit operations. Infrastructure recommendations are based on current conditions, with sea level rise and wildfire impacts spatially overlaid to inform infrastructure recommendations.

Funding Source

Funding was provided by the CalTrans Adaptation Planning Grant in the amount of $153,650. Additional match dollars in the amount of $19,908 were provided by HTA.

Research and Data

Adaptation, resiliency, and emergency response data and information sources included the following:

• Laird, A. (2018). Humboldt Bay Area Plan Sea Level Rise Sea Level Rise Vulnerability Assessment.
• Northern Hydrology & Engineering. (2014). Estimates of local or relative sea level rise for Humboldt Bay region.
• Westerling, A., Bryant, B. P., Preisler, H. K., Holmes, T. P., Hidalgo, H. G., Das, T., & Shrestha, S. R. (2011). Climate change and growth scenarios for California wildfire. Climatic Change, 109(SUPPL. 1), 445–463. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10584-011-0329-9
• CalFire. (2007). Draft Fire Hazard Severity Zones in LRA.
• Westerling, A., & Bryant, B. (2006). Climate change and wildfire in and around California: Fire modeling. A Report From: California Climate Change Center.
• Swain, D. L., Langenbrunner, B., Neelin, J. D., & Hall, A. (2018). Increasing precipitation volatility in twenty-first-century California. Nature Climate Change, 8(5), 427–433. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41558-018-0140-y
• Aghakouchak, A., Ragno, E., & Love, C. (2018). Projected Changes in California ’ S Precipitation, (February 2018), 32.
• Caltrans. (2014). District 1 Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment and Pilot Studies.
• Wills, C. J. (2000). Landslides in the Highway 101 Corridor Between Wilson Creek and Crescent City, Del Norte County, California. Retrieved from https://www.conservation.ca.gov/cgs/Documents/Landslides/Caltrans/SR_184/CT101dn.pdf
• Pacific Gas and Electric Company. (2018). 2017 ANNUAL ELECTRIC RELIABILITY REPORT.
• United States Department of Energy. (2017). Ensuring Electricity System Reliability, Security, and Resilience Ensuring Reliability, Security, and Resilience, (January), 1–69. Retrieved from https://www.energy.gov/sites/prod/files/2017/01/f34/Chapter IV Ensuring Electricity System Reliability%2C Security%2C and Resilience.pdf
• Pacific Gas and Electric Company. (2019). Pacific Gas and Electric Company 2019 Wildfire Safety Plan.
• California Center for Rural Policy. (2014). A Tale of Two Rural Broadband Victories.
• Initiative for Resiliency in Energy through Vehicles. (2016). Electric Vehicles and Emergency Response, (June).
• Federal Transit Administration. (2015). Emergency Relief Manual, Reference Manual for States and Transit Agencies on Response and Recovery from Declared Disasters and FTA’s Emergency Relief Program. Retrieved from https://www.transit.dot.gov/sites/fta.dot.gov/files/docs/FTA_Emergency_Relief_Manual_and_Guide_-_Sept_2015.pdf
• California Office of Emergency Services. (2013). Emergency Function 12 Utilities Annex Executive Summary. Retrieved from http://www.caloes.ca.gov/PlanningPreparednessSite/Documents/12 Executive Summary 10 30 2013 ADA Edits.pdf
• Maizlish N, English D, Chan J, Dervin K, English P. Climate Change and Health Profile Report: Humboldt County. Sacramento, CA: Office of Health Equity, California Department of Public Health; 2017.

Electric bus fleet and charging infrastructure requirements were determined using the Battery Electric Bus Optimization (BEBOP) Model developed by the Schatz Energy Research Center. Model code is available at https://github.com/schatzcenter/BEBOP. Additional details on the BEBOP Model can be found in the final project report.

Challenges

The following primary analysis challenges were overcome:

• Identifying actionable steps to address vulnerable infrastructure critical to the operation of an electric transit fleet.
• Cost-optimizing on-route charging infrastructure that can be shared across multiple transit systems over a larger geographic area.
• Cost optimizing charging schedules that account for time-of-use energy rate schedules and demand charges.
• Estimating actual electricity consumption at the meter, and estimating battery operational lifetimes.
• Running a sensitivity of infrastructure requirements on bus efficiency ranges observed in the field.

Outcomes

The target outcomes were:

• A climate resilient feasibility assessment of transit electrification that can be applied as a template for other transit agencies.

The next steps are:

• HCAOG will assess the results of this project and consider adoption of targets based on the results.
• Public agencies will continue discussions on long term adaptation planning impacts on the existing road network, incorporating recommendations from this project.
• HTA will seek a comparable analysis for hydrogen fuel cell technology in light of performance limitations with current battery electric technology.
• Identify infrastructure funding opportunities.

Replicability

The feasibility plan structure and methods can be replicated by transit agencies looking to conduct similar analyses. Furthermore, the BEBOP Model can be downloaded and used (at https://github.com/schatzcenter/BEBOP) to assist with infrastructure buildout projections.

Further Information