City Approves $12 Million Contract for StarMetro Charging Stations

At the March 26th meeting, the Tallahassee City Commission voted 5-0 to authorize the city manager to negotiate and execute StarMetro’s Bus Electrification Infrastructure Construction contract with Camber Operating Company, Inc. for $12,198,100.

Camber Operating Company is based in Miami, Florida, and is devoted “to ending EV charging anxiety.” Camber is responsible for the construction and installation of over 1,500 DC chargers.

The agenda item noted that contracting with Camber Operating Company is a step towards achieving the goal of building greener buses. Also, the building of the EV chargers is in line with the City of Tallahassee’s Five-Year Strategic Plan and clean energy resolutions.

Transportation Grant History

StarMetro completed a feasibility study on StarMetro Fleet Electrification Infrastructure in April 2022. The study included an analysis of route-based energy and charging optimization, equipment market, infrastructure, and yard layout assessments at StarMetro depots, utility grid interconnection assessments, the development of a renewable energy supply plan, an emergency backup power plan, and a financial analysis of the fleet conversion.

StarMetro used funding from the F.T.A. Section 5307 Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act (CRRSAA) for the design phase of this project.

In 2023, the Tallahassee City Commission approved a resolution to accept a grant related to a U.S. Department of Transportation green energy program. The grant amount is up to $20,370,792 for a total project amount of $24,282,338 with match funding included. StarMetro’s grant application was for the purchase of eight battery-electric buses (scalable to four) and infrastructure electrification.

The city officials noted the receipt and expenditure of this award is in accordance with the City’s 2019 Clean Energy Resolution and generally align with Objective 4E of the F.Y. 2020-2024 Strategic Plan to “ensure public transit is accessible, efficient and equitable,” as well as Objective 3D-2, which states the City will increase its annual grant awards by 5 percent.