Sometimes new technologies just don’t work and cause more problems than the one they were meant to solve.
But that’s how technology advances, from its failures.
Elk Grove wants a refund after hybrid-bus fires
By Loretta Kalb - lkalb@sacbee.com
Published 12:00 am PDT Saturday, May 10, 2008
The once-vaunted hybrid gasoline-electric buses that powered the early days of Elk Grove's transit service are languishing in a city corporation yard over city concerns about buses catching fire.
The city reportedly is demanding that manufacturers refund much of the $10 million it spent on 21 buses, most of which were on hand to launch Elk Grove's e-tran service in January 2005.
The hybrids, all older, refurbished buses, replaced Sacramento Regional Transit buses that city officials said weren't giving residents their money's worth. From the start there were breakdowns and delays. And the fires really upset the city.
In 33 months, hybrid buses caught fire four times and recorded 25 to 30 "thermal incidents," the city said. Manufacturers dispute those numbers.
In September, the underside of a bus caught fire. A fire crew arrived, and passengers were safely evacuated.
That fire was the last straw, interim City Manager Cody Tubbs told The Bee. He said he immediately sidelined the troubled hybrid fleet.
