Overview
- A state audit released Wednesday found the MTA is at serious risk of missing its pledge to convert nearly 6,000 buses to zero-emission vehicles by 2040 because of multiple, linked failures in the program.
- Auditors documented that the roughly 75 battery-electric buses in service break down more often, run shorter routes and spend more time charging and in repairs than diesel buses, reducing their usable service time.
- The MTA depends on one qualified manufacturer that has major delivery backlogs, and the agency has cut or paused some electric-bus orders after planned deliveries failed to materialize.
- Inspectors also flagged depot problems and training gaps, including limited power upgrades that restrict charging, depot structural needs for heavier batteries, and many mechanics and operators missing required high-voltage training.
- In response the MTA has put the manufacturer on notice, is buying interim lower-emission buses and testing hydrogen, and the comptroller urged the agency to produce contingency plans and reassess procurement timelines because delayed purchases compress the window to meet 2040.