Hypx, (edited ) Real world testing has proven that fuel cell buses are cheaper to operate than battery buses
This is based off of real world numbers and testing from LA county that demonstrations that fuel cell buses (FCEB) are actually cheaper to operate than battery buses (BEB).
https://cafcp.org/sites/default/files/07-24-2020-Foothill-ZEB-Update-to-Board.pdf
The conclusion is clear-cut:
34 BEBs 20 FCEBs Capital Cost - Buses $30,260,000 $25,300,000 Capital Cost - Fueling Infrastructure $10,948,000 $4,000,000 12 Year Fuel Cost $11,839,973 $15,661,340 12 Year PMI Cost $626,453.58 $1,879,361 Mid-life Maintenance Cost $6,800,000 $690,000 $60,474,426 $47,530,700 Cost Savings with FCEB $12,943,726 This is likely to repeat itself in all other experiments of a similar nature. FCEBs are going to be consistently cheaper than BEBs to operate. We can expect a future of FCEBs in the vast majority of situations.
Meanwhile, BEBs are proving themselves to be a nightmare of unreliability and limited capacities. There are an extraordinarily large number of examples of this:
https://commonwealthmagazine.org/transportation/t-notes-battery-buses-not-ready-for-primetime-yet/
https://whyy.org/articles/phillys-entire-fleet-of-battery-powered-buses-has-been-mia-since-february/
https://www.startribune.com/biodiesel-not-electric-buses-may-join-metro-transit-fleet/600029359/
https://www.duluthmonitor.com/2020/09/19/electric-bus-pilot-project-reveals-problems/
Even before the issue of higher costs comes up, the terrible reliability and lack of capabilities have likely already doomed BEBs to oblivion. I think this is a dead technology walking given all of the problems seen so far.
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