Tri Delta Transit provides over 3,000,000 trips each year to a population of over 250,000 residents in the 225 square miles of Eastern Contra Costa County in Northern California.
In support of California’s goal to transition transit agencies to 100% zero-emission by 2040, Tri Delta purchased four battery-electric buses (BEBs) from Proterra and BYD in 2018. Soon after deployment of their EV fleet, Tri Delta realized their plan to manually charge at the end of each shift led to significant demand changes and energy costs. Issues with intermittent outages and charger malfunctions also resulted in operational disruptions. The transit agency began working with bp pulse to manage their charging operations, including optimizing for energy costs and charger uptime.
Key takeaways
4
Electric transit buses
7.02
Avg. MWh/month
Working together
bp pulse worked with a trusted EVSE partner and quickly replaced four malfunctioning chargers to get Tri Delta back online.
Fixing charger malfunctions
The success of any EV fleet hinges on consistent and reliable access to charging. Before working with bp pulse, Tri Delta already installed four chargers to support their electric buses.
They struggled with maintaining power due to persistent charger defaults that would go unnoticed as the fleet did not have 24/7 monitoring of the equipment.
To solve for this, we evaluated their charging needs and determined the most effective resolution would be to replace their existing equipment, rather than work around non-operational chargers.
Our infrastructure work:
- Solved existing charger malfunctions
- Quickly replaced problematic chargers with new EVSE
- Minimized additional supply chain related project delays
- Restored access to reliable charging
Reducing demand charges and energy costs
When Tri Delta first deployed their electric buses, the transit fleet planned to have each driver or depot personnel initiate charging at the end of each shift. This meant the fleet manager could not plan for fluctuating utility time-of-use rates, demand charges, or flex alerts. This resulted in the fleet experiencing much higher-than-projected energy costs.
In order to reduce these costs and manage charging in real-time, the fleet worked with bp pulse to integrate our Omega charge management software. With our holistic cloud-based software, Tri Delta now charges their fleet at optimal times based on cost of energy and duty cycles.
With Omega, we helped Tri Delta:
- Cut energy costs
- Automate charging sessions
- Prioritize lowest cost energy
- Minimize demand charges
- Improve operations with real-time alerts and troubleshooting
Real-time management of charger maintenance
After replacing their existing chargers, we integrated our Elevate charger maintenance service to ensure Tri Delta’s charging uptime.
Elevate goes beyond original equipment manufacturer’s warranties – focusing on the long-term health of your equipment.
With Elevate, we handle all sub-suppliers in securing repair or replacement, providing a hassle-free experience.
With Elevate, we helped Tri Delta:
- Go beyond EVSE OEM warranties
- Reduce maintenance costs
- Respond to charger issues in real-time
Increasing savings with LCFS credits
In addition to charge management services, bp pulse also helped Tri Delta navigate the complicated process of generating revenue from California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) credits. Leveraging our knowledge and experience with the LCFS program, we were able to support Tri Delta by reporting its energy consumption and generating/monetizing carbon credits on their behalf – significantly improving the total cost of ownership for Tri Delta’s growing EV fleet.
Our products and services
Charge management software
Our cloud-based platform automates charging when energy costs are lower and sends critical alerts to you in real-time, all from one dashboard.
Turnkey
Our experts can support you through all stages of electrification, from site design and charger installation through to ongoing operations and maintenance.
Charging as a Service
Electrada’s 360 Charging as a Service, powered by bp pulse Omega, offers a seamless, fully managed EV charging solution that covers 100% of charging infrastructure costs*.
