Roberts Hawaiʻi driver Carl Mitsumori said the new EV tour buses the company purchased offer a smoother ride.
Mitsumori took part in a short blessing and dedication ceremony Thursday in downtown Honolulu, which featured five zero-emission electric battery buses that will soon be on the roads of Oʻahu.
These were bought through the state’s Diesel Replacement Rebate program, which is funded by the Volkswagen Environmental Mitigation Trust and the federal Diesel Emissions Reduction Act. The DRR offers rebates of up to 45% of the total on vehicles purchased to replace medium- and heavy-duty vehicles in favor of those that are electric or hydrogen-based.
The programs are administered by the Hawai‘i State Energy Office, Hawai‘i Department of Health and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
"A shared public-private cost model is necessary, and we must work together to meet the state’s 2045 zero-emission target and to protect Hawaiʻi's environment for future generations," Roberts Hawaiʻi's CEO Roy Pfund said in a press release.
Two of the buses will operate as school buses, while the other three will be the first EV tour buses in the nation. Hawai‘i Tourism Authority’s Ilihia Gionson said this fits in with statewide tourism goals.
"Our Oʻahu DMAP, Destination Management Action Plan, asks us to provide safe, convenient, reliable and efficient private and public transportation to shift visitors from driving rental cars to more environmentally sustainable models," Gionson said on Thursday.
HTA, in 2019, became part of the Malama Mandate and Aloha Plus Challenge, which hopes to move the start toward clean energy goals and reduce statewide greenhouse gas emissions.
The state is working toward a zero-emission target by 2045.
"Renewable energy and sustainable transportation are going to be a huge part of our future, so we need to build on progress we have already made, with more events like today," Gov. Josh Green said in a release.
