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New Hybrid TCAT Buses Coming to Ithaca
Two diesel hybrid buses are undergoing final checks before they make the nearly 3,000-mile road trip across the U.S. from the San Francisco Bay Area. In the coming days, specially trained cross-country bus drivers will shepherd the vehicles to their new home in Ithaca.
On Wednesday morning, TCAT General Manager Matthew Rosenbloom-Jones was at bus manufacturer Gillig’s plant in Livermore, California while he spoke with The Ithaca Voice. He had just signed the final paperwork to purchase the hybrid buses.
Once in Ithaca, he anticipates the new buses will be able to run their regular routes for two days on a single tank of fuel. They’re are expected to last between 12 and 14 years, or half a million miles, and cost TCAT $932,867 each.
“We’ve had hybrids in the past,” Rosenbloom-Jones said. “But these [new vehicles] are a much more advanced bus than what’s available on those [older] buses. The technology has really improved quite a bit. They are like a different generation of bus, but we’re familiar with the basic concept.”
While the new hybrid buses will still use diesel fuel, they boast new technology which allows them to switch between electric and conventional power in a more strategic manner.“
"[One new feature] basically allows the bus to shut down the diesel engine in a specific geographic area, so the bus runs in all electric mode,” Rosenbloom-Jones said. “So areas that are particularly sensitive to noise or pollution would benefit a lot from this feature.”
The hybrid buses will also rely more on their electric power when moving slowly or idling more frequently. Rosenbloom-Jones said that feature will help cut down on emissions in more congested areas like Collegetown or downtown Ithaca.
The transit agency also has six fully electric buses in rotation, also manufactured by Gillig.
Asked why TCAT opted to go for hybrid over full electric buses, Rosenbloom-Jones said it was a matter of planning and capacity. At present, TCAT’s depot can only accommodate chargers for a maximum of eight full electric buses. The agency had initially set the goal of an emissions free fleet by 2035.
- Megan Zerez, Ithaca Voice 2/17/26
Two diesel hybrid buses are undergoing final checks before they make the nearly 3,000-mile road trip across the U.S. from the San Francisco Bay Area. In the coming days, specially trained cross-country bus drivers will shepherd the vehicles to their new home in Ithaca.
On Wednesday morning, TCAT General Manager Matthew Rosenbloom-Jones was at bus manufacturer Gillig’s plant in Livermore, California while he spoke with The Ithaca Voice. He had just signed the final paperwork to purchase the hybrid buses.
Once in Ithaca, he anticipates the new buses will be able to run their regular routes for two days on a single tank of fuel. They’re are expected to last between 12 and 14 years, or half a million miles, and cost TCAT $932,867 each.
“We’ve had hybrids in the past,” Rosenbloom-Jones said. “But these [new vehicles] are a much more advanced bus than what’s available on those [older] buses. The technology has really improved quite a bit. They are like a different generation of bus, but we’re familiar with the basic concept.”
While the new hybrid buses will still use diesel fuel, they boast new technology which allows them to switch between electric and conventional power in a more strategic manner.“
"[One new feature] basically allows the bus to shut down the diesel engine in a specific geographic area, so the bus runs in all electric mode,” Rosenbloom-Jones said. “So areas that are particularly sensitive to noise or pollution would benefit a lot from this feature.”
The hybrid buses will also rely more on their electric power when moving slowly or idling more frequently. Rosenbloom-Jones said that feature will help cut down on emissions in more congested areas like Collegetown or downtown Ithaca.
The transit agency also has six fully electric buses in rotation, also manufactured by Gillig.
Asked why TCAT opted to go for hybrid over full electric buses, Rosenbloom-Jones said it was a matter of planning and capacity. At present, TCAT’s depot can only accommodate chargers for a maximum of eight full electric buses. The agency had initially set the goal of an emissions free fleet by 2035.
- Megan Zerez, Ithaca Voice 2/17/26
News and Events
Panel Discussion on NY Data Center Development, March 11
Across the country, local communities are organizing to protest plans for massive AI data centers in their neighborhoods that drive up electricity prices for everyone, threaten water supplies and disrupt lives. New York needs to get ahead of the problem by imposing a temporary moratorium on data center development while we figure out how, and if, their negative impacts can be eliminated.
Sustainable Finger Lakes (SFLX) is hosting a panel discussion to hear from Assemblywoman Anna Kelles, sponsor of the moratorium bill in the Assembly; Eric Weltman, Senior Organizer for Food & Water Watch, who helped push for a moratorium in NYS; and Aimee Caffrey, member of the FLX Strong citizen group protesting the creation of a 400 MW hyperscale AI data center on the shores of Cayuga Lake.
SFLX has been represented alongside other environmental advocates against the development. This webinar responds to the ongoing moratorium in Lansing and will launch the next phase of the Finger Lakes Forecast webinar series.
When: Wednesday, March 11, 12-1:15 pm
Where: Online
Please register here. For more information, visit www.sustainablefingerlakes.org/finger-lakes-forecast-webinar-series/.
Next TCCPI Meeting
Friday, March 27, 2026
9:00 - 11:00 am
The monthly TCCPI meetings have moved online. For Zoom info, contact Peter Bardaglio, the TCCPI coordinator, for further details at pbardaglio@gmail.com.
If you have any issues you would like to bring to the TCCPI monthly meetings, please e-mail us at info@tccpi.org. General meetings are on the last Friday of every month, except for November and December. Because of the holidays, the November-December meeting is held on the second Friday of December.
The Ithaca 2030 District
Visit TCCPI's latest project, the Ithaca 2030 District, an interdisciplinary public-private collaboration working to create a groundbreaking high-performance building district in Downtown Ithaca.
Across the country, local communities are organizing to protest plans for massive AI data centers in their neighborhoods that drive up electricity prices for everyone, threaten water supplies and disrupt lives. New York needs to get ahead of the problem by imposing a temporary moratorium on data center development while we figure out how, and if, their negative impacts can be eliminated.
Sustainable Finger Lakes (SFLX) is hosting a panel discussion to hear from Assemblywoman Anna Kelles, sponsor of the moratorium bill in the Assembly; Eric Weltman, Senior Organizer for Food & Water Watch, who helped push for a moratorium in NYS; and Aimee Caffrey, member of the FLX Strong citizen group protesting the creation of a 400 MW hyperscale AI data center on the shores of Cayuga Lake.
SFLX has been represented alongside other environmental advocates against the development. This webinar responds to the ongoing moratorium in Lansing and will launch the next phase of the Finger Lakes Forecast webinar series.
When: Wednesday, March 11, 12-1:15 pm
Where: Online
Please register here. For more information, visit www.sustainablefingerlakes.org/finger-lakes-forecast-webinar-series/.
Next TCCPI Meeting
Friday, March 27, 2026
9:00 - 11:00 am
The monthly TCCPI meetings have moved online. For Zoom info, contact Peter Bardaglio, the TCCPI coordinator, for further details at pbardaglio@gmail.com.
If you have any issues you would like to bring to the TCCPI monthly meetings, please e-mail us at info@tccpi.org. General meetings are on the last Friday of every month, except for November and December. Because of the holidays, the November-December meeting is held on the second Friday of December.
The Ithaca 2030 District
Visit TCCPI's latest project, the Ithaca 2030 District, an interdisciplinary public-private collaboration working to create a groundbreaking high-performance building district in Downtown Ithaca.
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