Electric school buses are hardly front page news these days, but GreenPower has charged its way onto our radar with the Mega Beast – a purpose-built 40-ft-long young people carrier with a monstrous battery bank.
Within the belly of this beast is "the biggest battery pack in the school bus market" at 387 kWh, for up to 300 miles (~480 km) between plug-ins. Like GreenPower's existing Beast bus, the Mega Beast can seat up to 90 passengers on the school run, but is aimed at servicing longer routes or rural locations that may not have the facilities for mid-day top-ups.
Company president Brendan Riley also notes that the big bus could pull double duty as a mobile energy storage unit. "V2G is becoming a common-sense tool that helps to create a more reliable grid, promote clean energy and reduce costs," he said. "The larger battery of the Mega Beast has the ability to provide for a more healthy and stable electric grid and community stability in areas where it is deployed and V2G is used."
The Mega Beast is built around a monocoque chassis with an aluminum body, and has the same length as the 194-kWh Beast model so likely sports the same 102 inch (259 cm) width and 138.5 inch (351 cm) height. Given specs include air suspension for a smooth ride and ABS braking.
"The extended range of the Mega Beast will help more school districts make the switch from NOx-emitting diesel buses to the GreenPower all-electric, zero-emission option that provides a safer, cleaner and healthier ride for school kids," said GreenPower's Michael Perez.
The Mega Beast will enter production in early 2024 at the company's facilities in California and West Virginia.
Source: GreenPower Motor Company
