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Nearly 100 electric buses purchased with public funds for a total value of 96 million dollars remain out of service and abandoned in South Florida, according to an investigation by the channel Local 10.
In both Miami-Dade and Broward counties, dozens of these vehicles remain stored, non-operational, and without a definitive short-term solution, while local and federal authorities attempt to determine their future.
All those electric buses, purchased with taxpayer money, have been out of circulation for over a year and continue to be parked, some in a landfill and others lined up at the Homestead Air Reserve Base.
The buses were manufactured by the company Proterra and purchased by both counties just three years ago, when they were introduced as the future of public transportation.
Miami-Dade Transit purchased 69 Proterra buses for a cost of 61.8 million dollars, funded by federal, state, and local surcharges. Broward, on the other hand, acquired 31 units at approximately 1.1 million dollars each, and they are stored in a landfill near U.S. 27.
These vehicles were purchased with the expectation of modernizing public transport, reducing emissions, and improving the efficiency of the system. However, today they represent a stalled investment that is neither serving the residents nor generating environmental or economic benefits.
A purchase that only brought frustration
Problems arose quickly after the launch. The buses experienced repeated mechanical failures, frequently broke down, and spare parts became difficult or impossible to obtain.
Coree Cuff Lonergan, executive director of Broward County Transit, described the pattern of failures: "They could only complete a partial route and then they would fail, which required sending mechanics or towing them back to one of our two garages. And that kept happening again and again."
Lonergan also revealed that the issues are not limited to the Proterra buses: "We received two additional buses from another manufacturer, and they also don't work."
The final blow came when Proterra declared bankruptcy in August 2023, leaving both counties without technical support or a reliable supply of spare parts. Its assets were sold to a successor company, but technical service remains limited.
The case of Miami-Dade
In Miami-Dade, dozens of buses remain parked at the Homestead Air Reserve Base and at the Northeast Bus Facility, near Miami Gardens Drive.
In January, commissioners Roberto González and Natalie Milian Orbis pushed for a resolution that required Mayor Daniella Levine Cava's administration to deliver a detailed report on what occurred with the electric fleet, including failures, costs, and future strategies.
That document was supposed to be delivered within 30 days, but the deadline passed without the report being published, which has caused increasing discontent within the local government.
The commissioners have expressed concern over the lack of transparency and a concrete plan. González has pointed out that if the buses are not operational and do not fulfill their environmental or public service functions, the county should seek to recover the investment made.
Mayor Levine Cava herself publicly acknowledged the issues with the project, describing it as a misguided decision in its execution.
But it has also pointed out that the county has tried to keep the fleet operational through repairs and sourcing spare parts, although without sufficient success.
One of the main problems is that the buses have experienced constant mechanical failures, which has caused them to interrupt routes or go out of service after partial trips. The lack of spare parts has worsened the situation, especially following the bankruptcy of the manufacturing company.
Despite this, the administration remains hopeful of being able to reactivate part of the fleet in the future, even exploring options with external companies to refurbish the vehicles.
Broward: progressive abandonment and waste disposal process
In Broward County, the approach has changed radically. Instead of trying to repair the fleet, transport authorities are working in coordination with the federal government to determine how to dispose of the buses.
This is because the vehicles were partially acquired with federal funds, which means that their disposal or removal requires approval from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA).
Financial impact and risk of federal fund repayment
One of the most delicate aspects of the case is the funding. A large portion of the buses was acquired with federal subsidies, which entails strict rules from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) regarding their minimum service time, typically up to 12 years or 500,000 miles.
If the buses are withdrawn early, the counties could be forced to return part of the funds received.
According to Local 10, Broward has formally requested a waiver from the FTA to avoid reimbursements and to be able to withdraw the buses without financial penalties. Miami-Dade, on the other hand, is still trying to find alternatives to reactivate them before considering their permanent withdrawal.
A project that went from promise to structural problem
Just a few years ago, the introduction of these buses was presented as a key step towards more modern and sustainable public transportation. The complete electrification of fleets was seen as a future goal for the region.
However, the combination of technical failures, lack of spare parts, the manufacturer's bankruptcy, and financial problems has turned that vision into a situation of operational and political uncertainty.
Today, the result is an expensive fleet immobilized, an ongoing debate about the actual efficiency of electric transportation in large urban systems, and a current investigation into the fate of a multimillion-dollar investment that still lacks a clear resolution.
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