'Clock is ticking' to figure out future of Whitehorse bus fleet

The City of Whitehorse is in a race against time to figure out the future of its transit bus fleet. 

The city has learned its current bus manufacturer could stop making diesel-engine vehicles within two or three years. It has also determined that electric transit wouldn't work in the Yukon capital, at least not without major infrastructure upgrades. 

On Monday, city councillors voted to undertake a $95,000 study on zero-emission transit options. 

The City's director of development services, Mike Gau, said there was "some urgency to come up with a game plan."

"We don't have a lot of time to pivot once we collect new information from this study... it could have larger impacts, including to our buildings, requirements for new transit hubs, roads, and so forth," he said.

"The clock is ticking."

According to the city's 2024 transportation master plan, there are currently 15 active conventional buses in the city's fleet, along with two vehicles for handy bus service.

Obstacles to an electric fleet  

City administration has previously found a host of potential obstacles with electric buses.

It carried out a feasibility study in 2020 which highlighted potential "emergency response and winter-related issues." 

Last week, staff told councillors the city would need new charging stations for an electric transit fleet — and it was unclear if the Yukon's electrical grid could cope.

They also advised roadways and bays might need to be upgraded to account for the heavier weight of electric buses. 

Based on other jurisdictions' experiences with electric buses, they also reported that Whitehorse might need new bus routes and transit hubs to counter the "limited driving range." 

Councillor Dan Boyd told his peers Monday night that the answer was clear.

"There's been some terrible results across Canada with electric buses, battery buses. I believe we don't need a study to tell us that we should probably order some more diesel buses to get ahead of the curve for now," he said. 

However, city councillors eventually voted to order a "transit decarbonization roadmap" study. 

Mayor Laura Cabott says it will consider how other green technologies might work, and give the city a clear path forward. 

"It's a full thought-out plan. And I think the idea is it's not just about buying buses, and what kind of buses, and not just electric busses — the whole gamut of what could be available," she said. 

"Transit is important to this council, and transit is important to citizens. We don't want to be left hanging dry, [unable] to move ahead on our plans." 

The study will be funded from city reserves until it can source external funding, such as a grant from the Green Municipal Fund.

The study is expected to be complete by the end of the year.