The first of 20 compressed natural gas (CNG) shuttle buses has begun operating at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI) in Maryland. The 60ft (18m) articulated bus will run 24/7, shuttling passengers between the terminal and the consolidated rental car facility.
“These new buses will offer our travelers the highest level of comfort and service,” said Ricky Smith, executive director for BWI. “As our passenger traffic grows, the buses will also provide more capacity to serve our rental car customers.”
The buses, manufactured by New Flyer of America, provide customer amenities including wi-fi, USB charging ports, digital screens and plush seats. The capacity of the new buses is 50% greater than that of the older fleet.
The US$15m purchase is funded through the Customer Facility Charge (CFC) fee on airport rental car transactions. The remaining buses will be delivered to the airport and put into service before the end of the year. The new buses will replace a fleet of 40ft (12m), transit-style rental car shuttle buses that were manufactured and put into action in 2004.
