Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT) has agreed to purchase five 35-foot Proterra Catalyst E2 electric buses and five 125 kW Proterra plug-in charging systems. CLT, which serves approximately 46 million passengers each year, becomes the ninth airport to purchase Proterra electric buses for ground transportation and joins a growing list of major airports across the US that are electrifying their fleets.

Proterra battery-electric buses will contribute to CLT’s sustainability goals. Proterra Catalyst vehicles have no tailpipe emissions and decrease dependency on fossil fuels. Tailpipe emissions are reduced by 230,000 pounds of CO₂ annually each time a conventionally-fueled diesel vehicle is replaced by a Proterra electric bus.

Proterra charging systems utilize the universal J1772-CCS Type 1 charging standard, enabling buses, utility vehicles and cars to share the same chargers. By planning for scale now, CLT can utilize the charging infrastructure for a range of battery-electric powered service vehicles in the future.

CLT is the first airport to leverage the Georgia State Contract to purchase Proterra electric buses. The state of Georgia underwent a testing and review process and selected Proterra as a statewide vendor for electric buses, and allows other states to leverage the state contract to simplify the process of purchasing electric buses. CLT’s Proterra buses will be manufactured locally in Greenville, SC.

Airports across the country are transitioning their ground transportation vehicle fleets to zero-emission buses, and CLT joins a growing list of airports across the nation that are leading this trend, including San Francisco International Airport (SFO); John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK); Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR); LaGuardia Airport (LGA); Sacramento International Airport (SMF); Silicon Valley’s Norman Y. Mineta San José International Airport (SJC); Raleigh-Durham International Airport (RDU); and Honolulu International Airport (HNL).

Airports are an ideal use case for electric vehicle technology because of their predictable circulator routes and potential for shared charging infrastructure with other service vehicles in the fleet.

—Proterra CEO Ryan Popple