School districts that tested the Kinetics Hybrid system on their buses saw significant increases in fuel economy and reductions in emissions, according to a case study from Crosspoint Kinetics.

Three Indiana school systems conducted trials of the Kinetics Hybrid, which is a bolt-on parallel electric system that captures regenerative braking energy and reuses it on vehicle launch.

The hybrids from Crosspoint Kinetics, which is a Cummins Crosspoint company, were retrofitted on four diesel buses in the districts’ fleets. The buses ran their regular routes with the hybrid installed for a 10-month trial.

According to the Crosspoint Kinetics case study, two districts saw average fuel economy increases of 26% to 28% miles per gallon, while the third district experienced an increase of 17% miles per gallon. The buses also experienced reductions in emissions of 25% to 30%.

With its regenerative braking assist, the Kinetics Hybrid also reportedly reduced the number of brake changes required by extending brake pad life by three to five times.

No additional infrastructure, charging stations or batteries were required with the Kinetics Hybrid, company officials said.

Read the full case study here.

Crosspoint Kinetics recently confirmed that the Kinetics Hybrid system is compatible with a variety of school bus and truck chassis.

"As long as the front engine, rear drive vehicle has a wheelbase of at least 158 inches, we can bolt on the Kinetics Hybrid system," said Amy Dobrikova, vice president of business development and strategy. "That makes the Kinetics Hybrid a more versatile system for fleets that lease, run multiple models or that want to move the hybrid from one vehicle to another based on when they retire their vehicles."

The Kinetics Hybrid fits on the following chassis, among others:

• Chevy 4500 "G"
• Ford E-350
• Ford E-450
• Ford F-350
• Ford F-450
• Spartan class 3-4
• Blue Bird class 6-7
• Chevy 4500 class 5
• Dodge 5500
• GMC class 5-7
• Ford F-59 chassis
• Ford F-550
• Ford F-650
• Ford F-750
• Freightliner class 5-7
• International class 5-7
• Spartan class 5-7
• Thomas Built Buses class 5-7
• Workhorse chassis class 5-7
• Isuzu Reach

Fleet owners are able to purchase the Kinetics Hybrid directly from Crosspoint Kinetics or through the company’s distributors. For more information, go to www.kineticshybrid.com.