Canada's electric bus rollout faces depot and grid upgrade bottlenecks, Hitachi Energy warns
By Eve
A white paper from Hitachi Energy highlights that upgrading electricity networks, charging infrastructure and transit depots built for diesel fleets has become the main barrier to scaling electric bus operations in Canada, even as billions are spent on vehicle purchases. The Toronto Transit Commission plans to expand its electric bus fleet to around 400 vehicles and aims for roughly half its buses to be zero emission by 2030. Daniel Simounet, Hitachi Energy's vice president for transportation in North America, said the challenge has shifted from buying buses to upgrading the systems needed to run them, as pilot projects turn into large fleet orders.
Why it matters
Transit agencies and charging operators must now prioritise depot electrical upgrades and grid capacity planning alongside vehicle procurement to avoid delays in fleet electrification schedules. The findings signal that infrastructure investment timelines, not just bus orders, will determine rollout speed for public sector EV fleets across Canada.
Source
- Source
- https://www.nationalobserver.com/2026/03/10/news/electric-transit-infrastructure-lagging-analysis
- Original title
- “Electric buses are coming fast to Canada, but outdated garages, grids and chargers are slowing them down”
- Published
- 9 March 2026
- Updated
- 18 July 2026
In this story
- Topic
- EV Charging
- Place
- Canada
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