Authored by Maggie Pears, Lead Managing Associate

‍In July, the Zero Emission Bus Resource Alliance (ZEBRA) hosted an Energy Management Roundtable in partnership with Montgomery County, Maryland. Representatives of 15 transit agencies gathered to share experiences on zero-emission bus (ZEB) deployments and learn about the cutting-edge technologies offered to support ZEB programs. Content included presentations from eight industry innovators on charge management, operational software tools, and microgrids; a site tour of Montgomery County's Brookville Depot; and opportunities to network and share experiences. ZEBRA members are pioneers and early adopters in zero-emission transit and bring abundant energy and expertise to these fantastic in-person events.

ZEBRA's latest roundtable was a unique event format in which presenters got to introduce their product as it relates to zero-emission transit, share in back-and-forth dialogue with CTE's expert moderator, Steve Clermont, and field questions from a transit-only audience. The eight sponsor-presenters all shared innovative solutions for zero-emission transit operators:

• Charge management solution providers focused on how to maximize charger uptime, minimize demand and time-of-use costs, and reduce capital expenses.
• Operational software providers focused on smart fleet management, building adaptive models, and user-friendly dashboards.
• Microgrid providers focused on operational resilience, stable energy costs, and financing investments through operating costs rather than as a capital expense.

For a live demonstration of ZEB solutions at work, ZEBRA members and presenters boarded a Ride On battery electric bus for a quick trip to Montgomery County's Brookville Depot. This nation-leading depot boasts a solar photovoltaic canopy, renewable natural gas generators, battery energy storage, and charging capacity for 70 electric buses. Montgomery County project partners AlphaStruxure, The Mobility House, and Heliox joined the Montgomery County staff on site to showcase their respective project components, and wowed ZEBRA members with their incredible solution engineering and teamwork.

As always, the highlight of this event for ZEBRA was the exchange of knowledge between agencies. The learning curve in the zero-emission industry can be steep, and many ZEBRA members are among the first agencies to try out new zero-emission solutions. Sharing experiences - challenges, successes, and everything in between - moves the whole industry forward by allowing agencies to learn from the experiences of their peers.

Thank you to the event sponsors, AlphaStruxure, Better Fleet, ChargePoint, EO Charging, The Mobility House, Scale Microgrids, WideSense, and Zero Mission for presenting innovative solutions for ZEB operators, and Montgomery County for partnering as the host agency.