Tri Delta Transit
Tri Delta Transit provides over 3,000,000 trips each year to a population of over 250,000 residents in the 225 square miles of Eastern Contra Costa County in Northern California.
Tri Delta began its electric bus program with the purchase of four battery-electric buses (BEBs) from Proterra and BYD in 2018, in support of California’s goal to transition transit agencies to 100% zero-emissions by 2040. The initial charging plan Tri Delta had developed for their new BEBs led to higher-than-projected demand charges and energy costs. To solve this, Tri Delta sought out bp pulse to help optimize their bills and manage their charging going forward.
Customer Highlights
4 Electric Transit Buses
Avg. 7.02 MWh/month
bp pulse's omega charge management system reduced Tri Delta's operational costs by 40%.
The problem
Unmanaged onboarding of EVs
Tri Delta’s original intent was to have drivers or depot personnel initiate charging of electric buses at the end of each shift, without any awareness of utility rate fluctuations like demand charges or time-of-use tariffs. This resulted in significantly higher energy bills than they expected. Tri Delta was also experiencing intermittent outages and EVSE malfunctions without notification, which created more operational disruptions.
Our omega software solved these problems by:
- Cutting costs through utility integration
- Providing real-time rate analysis
- Automating charging sessions
- Prioritizing lowest-cost energy
- Improving operations with real-time alerts and troubleshooting
More ways to save
Increasing savings with LCFS credits
In addition to charge management services, bp pulse also helped Tri Delta navigate the complicated process of generating revenue from California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) credits. Leveraging our knowledge and experience with the LCFS program, we were able to support Tri Delta by reporting its energy consumption and generating/monetizing carbon credits on their behalf – significantly improving the total cost of ownership for Tri Delta’s growing EV fleet.
With bp pulse, Tri Delta had the confidence to scale their electric operations and onboard additional electric buses.
Equipment management
Elevate with bp pulse
When Tri Delta began to experience performance issues with their chargers, bp pulse stepped in with our Elevate solution, going beyond existing manufacturing warranties and taking on the responsibility for Tri Delta’s charging station operations. Through a thorough triage, troubleshooting, and repair process, we successfully resolved the problems in Tri Delta’s equipment and restored their service.
bp pulse helped us pinpoint the financial, operational, and equipment improvements we could make to realize 40 percent savings and ensure uptime for our riders who depend on our bus service to go about their daily lives. As we expand our EV fleet, we look forward to working with bp pulse to realize even greater savings.
Steve Ponte, Chief Operating Officer
Tri Delta Transit
Our products and services
Design and engineering
