The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) today announced that it is now under contract with the Center for Transportation and the Environment (CTE) to begin work on two projects selected in October 2006 as part of FTA's National Fuel Cell Bus Technology Development Program (NFCBP).

Atlanta, GA - May 7, 2007--The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) today announced that it is now under contract with the Center for Transportation and the Environment (CTE) to begin work on two projects selected in October 2006 as part of FTA's National Fuel Cell Bus Technology Development Program (NFCBP). CTE is one of three regional corsortia funded by FTA to manage the fuel cell research and demonstration projects. CTE was chosen as part of a national competition among advanced transportation organizations vying to play a leadership role in the FTA program. CTE is the very first consortia to be put under contract.

CTE, a non-profit organization based in Atlanta, Georgia, will be managing these projects as part of its Southern Fuel Cell Coalition (SFCC), a regional initiative to support the development, demonstration, and commercialization of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies in the Southeastern region of the United States

Each SFCC project, summarized below, focuses on hydrogen and fuel cell transit bus development and deployment and involves national corporations working in partnership with southern-based businesses and universities.

• Survey of Hydrogen Bus Users, 2002-2007
The project will survey all hydrogen bus demonstrations operated anywhere around the world from 2002 through 2007 to develop a report that reviews the projects and technologies deployed and analyzes the results and lessons learned. It will help maximize the benefit of recent fuel cell bus demonstrations, which represent a tremendous investment from governments and industry participants around the world.

• Dual Variable Output Fuel Cell Hybrid Bus Validation, Testing, and Demonstration Project
The bus developed through this program will be considered a "pre-commercial" hybrid-electric fuel cell bus, but ultimately will meet the commercialization goals of the NFCBP and the transit industry. The Technology Team will introduce a Super Battery specific to this transit vehicle application that is expected to realize significant cost savings and weight reductions in the long term. The team's proposed configuration of fuel cell stacks, working in parallel when needed and alternately in a single configuration when load demands are less, could provide a combined stack life in the 8000+ hour range, compared to current large fuel cell stack lives in the 2000-3000 hour range. The bus will be demonstrated in Birmingham, Alabama, New Haven and Hartford, Connecticut, and Columbia, South Carolina.

SFCC projects and activities promote interstate cooperation and regional job growth associated with the use of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies. The SFCC continues
to organize and expand a network of stakeholders and is providing seed funding for eight regional demonstration projects through 2009, with more projected.

CTE's Executive Director, Dan Raudebaugh, gives credit for being under contract first to the project team members, who provided FTA contract officers with all requested information in a timely and thorough manner. "CTE is proud to work with these team members and is looking forward to setting a new national standard for fuel cell bus performance," said Raudebaugh. "We believe we can ultimately create a robust market for these technologies in the Southeastern United States," he added.

About CTE

Founded in 1993, the Center for Transportation and the Environment (CTE) is a nonprofit, 501 (c)(3) member-based organization that develops and promotes advancements in transportation technologies, vehicles, and fuels that reduce environmental pollution and fossil fuel dependency. In partnership with federal, state, and local stakeholders, CTE serves as a catalyst for public, private, and nonprofit organizations to collaborate on a broad range of research, development, demonstration, and commercialization projects. Past and present partners include the Atlanta Regional Commission, the Georgia Department of Transportation, the Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority (GEFA), the U.S. Departments of Transportation, Energy, Interior, and Defense, NASA, and the Environmental Protection Agency, among many others.

Membership in CTE is open to any organization interested in advancing alternative transportation ideas, methodologies, or products. Members include universities, corporations, civic and nonprofit organizations, national laboratories, and a variety of transportation-related associations from across the country.