The Mobility House and New York City School Bus Umbrella Services (NYCSBUS) have received the Consolidated Edison (Con Edison) "Most Innovative Interconnection Award" for their pioneering electric school bus infrastructure project at the Zerega Avenue Depot in the Bronx. Representatives from The Mobility House and NYCSBUS accepted the award at the 2024 Con Edison E-Mobility Awards at the utility provider's headquarters in New York.
This is the second award The Mobility House and NYCSBUS have earned for their collaboration, following the 2023 Transportation Power Player Award from SEPA. The project team will deploy 25 EPA-funded zero-emission electric school buses equipped with advanced smart-charging technology across New York City, with 14 located at NYCSBUS’ Zerega Avenue Depot. The project will provide educational benefits for school bus operators and districts throughout the region. The project team includes the World Resources Institute, CALSTART, Bronx Community College, New York League of Conservation Voters, and South Bronx Unite.
Gregor Hintler, CEO of The Mobility House North America, expressed his excitement about the project, saying, "We are honored to receive this recognition from Con Edison. In demonstrating this innovative technological approach, using ALM to optimize utility infrastructure, we are setting a precedent for fleet operators with power-constrained sites in New York and across the country."
The Mobility House, acting as the technical lead, worked with NYCSBUS and Con Edison to identify the available power capacity at the Zerega Avenue Depot. Using their proprietary Charging Simulation tool, The Mobility House determined that NYCSBUS could use automated load management (ALM) to safely install 14 electric bus chargers, totaling 268 kW of nameplate capacity, on a site that is constrained to a maximum EV charging load limit of 80 kW. This marks the first implementation of an oversubscribed site using ALM within Con Edison's service territory.
Without the use of ALM, the Zerega depot would have been limited to charging only four buses on its 80 kW connection. The ALM function of The Mobility House’s charge management system, ChargePilot, allowed NYCSBUS to maximize their existing utility infrastructure, avoid the cost of a utility upgrade, and accelerate the installation of their electric bus charging equipment.
Matt Berlin, CEO of NYCSBUS, highlighted the broader impact of the award-winning project, saying, "This project is a testament to what can be achieved when innovative technology meets determined collaboration. We are not only advancing our commitment to sustainability but also improving the daily lives of countless students and communities in the Bronx. We are immensely proud of this recognition and look forward to expanding our electric bus fleet further."
Alison Kling, department manager of E-Mobility Infrastructure Programs at Con Edison, emphasized the significance of the collaboration, saying, "The success of this project demonstrates the power of technology to push the boundaries of what's possible in electric mobility. By working together to safely optimize EV chargers on a power-constrained site, we have developed a model that can be replicated across our service territory and beyond, paving the way for a cleaner, more sustainable future."
