More Hybrid Buses Coming to Champaign-Urbana

The Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District is gearing up to replace half of its buses with hybrid models in the next couple of years.

The 40-foot diesel -electric vehicles are each priced at around $570 thousand dollars. Many of the existing gas burning vehicles are nearly 20 years old.

MTD Assistant Director Tom Costello said the typical life of a bus is 12 years, but that the mass transit district tries to keep its vehicles around for at least 15 years.

"Once you get to 15 years, your maintenance costs begin to go up exponentially," said Costello. "So, if we're going to replace them, we're going to try to replace them with vehicles that use less fuel and burn more cleanly."

Costello said the hybrids do not require nearly as much maintenance work as the gas-burning vehicles. The mass transit district first introduced hybrid buses in 2009. Spokeswoman Jan Kijowski said the long-term plan is to replace every one of its vehicles with hybrids.

Each bus will also include special filters that are designed to cut down on carbon emissions. Both the buses and filters will be supported through a combination of local, state, and national grants.