Yesterday the Metro G (Orange) Line returned to its usual North Hollywood station pick-up and drop-spots, as construction of electric bus chargers has been more-or-less completed. The construction closure was originally announced to last from July 28 through late October 2019, but was extended through last weekend - January 26, 2020. Construction impacts on G Line riders has been minimal as the bus rapid transit line shifted to nearby streets for a very short distance.
By the end of this fiscal year - late June 2020 - Metro plans to operate the G Line with fully electric buses.
The G Line will be Metro's first electric bus line, serving as a proving ground for the agency's transition to full bus fleet electrification by 2030.
![Electric buses will soon run on the Metro Orange Line. Photo by Metro](https://lede-admin.la.streetsblog.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2019/11/MetroelectricbusJuly2019.jpg?w=710)
Metro will run all-electric 60-foot articulated New Flyer buses on the G Line. The Metro board approved purchase of 65 New Flyer electric buses in 2017. New Flyer states that these buses have a range of 230 miles. In July 2019, Metro took delivery of its initial electric New Flyer bus. Per this Metro presentation, the battery-electric buses will be charged at two chargers at the Chatsworth bus yard, plus eight chargers along the 18-mile G Line route: four at the North Hollywood station, two at the Chatsworth Station terminus, and two at the Canoga Station. G Line bus operations will include a 7-10 minute layover each hour - for in-route charging, which adds ~40 miles of additional range per charge.
Per Metro's post at The Source, charger construction continues at Canoga Station, and will soon begin at Chatsworth Station.
![Metro will soon be running all electric buses on the Orange and Silver Lines. Map via Metro presentation](https://lede-admin.la.streetsblog.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2019/11/Metroelectricbusmap.jpg?w=633)
Metro will also be electrifying its J (Silver) Line BRT in fiscal year 2020-21, utilizing 40-foot BYD battery-electric buses.
Metro estimates anticipate that full bus electrification will cost more than a billion dollars: $0.7-1.0 billion for charging infrastructure, plus another $400 million for the buses. Earlier this month, Metro applied for state Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program (TIRCP) funding for zero-emission buses and the charging infrastructure to support them. As of late 2019, Metro planned to request $104 million in TIRCP funding for a $210 million electrification initiative. The electrification project would include purchasing 220 battery-electric buses that would operate out of Metro divisions in El Monte and Gardena.
![Metro charger construction is said to be complete at North Hollywood, but the charger arm does not appear entirely done. Photo: Joe Linton/Streetsblog L.A.](https://lede-admin.la.streetsblog.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2020/01/NoHoCharger120Jan26.jpg?w=710)