Multimillion investment to shrink Nassau County carbon footprint

  • 2022-03-28
Lawmakers have earmarked $7.5m to bring electric public buses to Nassau County.

A combination of federal, state and local funds has been approved to buy six electric buses for use throughout the county. These buses promise to be the first of hundreds that will be part of Nassau’s plan to achieve zero carbon emissions.

According the Nasssau Inter-County Express (NICE) Bus CEO Jack Khzouz, as quoted by CBS news, the county’s carbon footprint will “literally go down to zero” over the next two decades or so.

As Merrick residents may know, NICE moved from diesel a number of years ago, converting its fleet to compressed natural gas. Now the county plans to have six of its 275-bus fleet switched to electric battery-powered buses by the end of the year, representing a healthy start for NICE’s latest goal of populating its whole fleet with electric buses.

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The cost of an electric bus is about $1m, but according to Richard Nicolello, Nassau Legislature presiding officer, each electric vehicle will save over $400,000 in fuel and more than $125,000 in maintenance over its 12-year lifespan.

Electric public buses can travel 180 miles on a single charge, which is ample milage for a full day of operation. The MTA has a goal of having a zero-emissions bus fleet by the year 2040.