written like an advertisement . please help improve it by removing promotional content and inappropriate external links and by adding encyclopedic content written from a neutral point of view . september 2015 learn how and when to remove this template message proterra inc. type private industry transportation founded 2004 2004 in golden colorado headquarters burlingame california united states of america number of locations burlingame california ; city of industry california ; greenville south carolina area served north america key people ryan popple number of employees 51 200 1 website www.proterra.com proterra inc. is an american manufacturing company focusing on the design and manufacture of all electric zero emissions vehicles and on route fast charge and in depot systems . the company s mission is to deliver clean quiet transportation to all by replacing heavy duty fossil fueled transit buses with zero emission electric vehicles that reduce greenhouse gas and diesel particulate matter emissions without sacrificing vehicle performance or uptime . proterra s ecoride be35 was the first 30 ft 9 m or larger all battery electric bus to complete federally mandated altoona testing . it was also the first full size fast charge transit bus to enter revenue service in the u.s. and meet california s zero emission bus rules . the company s second generation bus the proterra catalyst is available in two vehicle sizes 35 ft and 40 ft and is made of lightweight and durable carbon fiber and advanced composite materials . the 40 ft model has a total capacity of 77 passengers 40 seated 37 standing . as of september 2015 update its buses have a single charge range of up to 258 miles 415 km . 2 the company is headquartered in burlingame california and has manufacturing facilities located in the city of industry california and in greenville south carolina . contents 1 history 2 products 2.1 ecoride be35 2.2 battery technology and recharging 2.3 the proterra catalyst 3 development and manufacturing 4 current operations 5 investors 6 see also 7 references 8 external links history edit proterra inc. was founded in golden co by dale hill in 2004 . hill had previously founded trans tech a denver co based bus manufacturing company that focused on building cng hybrid buses throughout the 1990s as well as alumatech a manufacturing company that focused on aluminum dump trailers . following the federal transit administration fta s push for alternative fuels and forms of mobility through such programs as the clean fuels grant program bus and bus facilities clean fuels grant program bus and bus facilities 5309 5318 and the tiger and tigger programs hill wanted go beyond the success of his cng buses that launched the world s first fleet of alternative fuel buses at the 16th street mall in denver colorado . he wanted to create a company that would take the lead in creating zero emission u.s. based transit buses . this was particularly important since many of the programs including the clean fuels grant program 3 and the tigger 4 program either exclude cng buses and facilities explicitly require capital investments that assist in reducing the energy consumption of a transit agency and or reduce greenhouse gas emissions of a transit agency . in 2010 proterra announced that it would move its manufacturing plant from golden colorado to greenville south carolina due to its close proximity to clemson university international center for automotive research cu icar . the company moved its headquarters and manufacturing plant to greenville sc in 2011 . ryan popple formerly of tesla motors was appointed ceo in 2014 . 5 in 2015 proterra was awarded a 3 million grant from the california energy commission to fund the design development and construction of the company s new state of the art zero emission battery electric transit bus manufacturing line in the city of industry california . proterra moved its headquarters from greenville south carolina to burlingame california in october 2015 . 6 as of november 2015 update the company has delivered to transit agencies 60 buses that have logged more than 1.6 million miles 2.6 million kilometres . products edit ecoride be35 edit be35 bus proterra s ecoride be35 7 is a 35 ft 11 m composite body fast charge battery electric bus that seats 38 including the driver and has a passenger capacity of 60 . it is the first 30 ft 9 m or larger heavy duty all electric bus ever to complete federally required durability reliability and safety testing at the bus research and testing center at altoona pennsylvania . the 12yr 500 000 mi 800 000 km sturaa test was completed on march 5 2012 . 8 results from the sturaa test showed an average combined fuel economy of 1.81 kwh mi 1.12 kw h km or 20.84 miles per us gallon 8.86 km l diesel equivalent . 9 compared to the buses it replaces conventional diesel buses average 3.86 miles per us gallon 1.64 km l ; cng buses return 3.27 miles per us gallon 1.39 km l diesel equivalent ; and diesel hybrid buses average about 4.6 miles per us gallon 2.0 km l 10 the results are up to 600 % better . battery technology and recharging edit the vehicle s 220 kw electric motor is powered by a lithium titanate battery that can recharged in 5 10 minutes at a bus stop via overhead terminals connected to a charging station while stopped at a bus stop without driver involvement . charging which would normally take place during a brief layover typically provides charge for a further 26 miles 42 km of operation . 11 12 as of june 2016 update proterra will grant royalty free access to the patents covering their overhead charging system . 13 proterra catalyst the proterra catalyst edit proterra introduced the catalyst a new fast charge 100 % electric bus in 2014 to replace the ecoride be35 . the all new bus built on the ecoride s design and engineering and delivered a longer lighter and more fuel efficient bus . the second generation bus measures 40 ft and weighs approximately 27 000 lb 12 000 kg which is less than any other 40 ft 12 m transit bus on the market today . 14 the bus is built from lightweight durable carbon composite . the overall lower weight helps reduce wear and tear on streets . it has no tailpipe and runs virtually silent . with the on route fast charging system the catalyst can be operated continuously 24 7 without the need to head to the depot for lengthy charge times . the company added a 35 ft model of the catalyst to its product line october 2015 . it is one of the world s most efficient transit buses ; it thus leaves a very small carbon footprint . like other all electric vehicles there are zero tailpipe emissions . collectively proterra buses have been estimate to have reduced greenhouse gas emissions by more than 5 000 000 lb 2 300 000 kg co2 equivalent when compared to conventional diesel and cng buses assuming average us mix for energy generation . 15 development and manufacturing edit proterra is a national company with its headquarters in silicon valley and manufacturing in san gabriel valley within metro los angeles and in south carolina s upstate region utilizing strengths and competitive advantages of all locations . the proterra headquarters is centrally located in california home to america s largest concentration of electric vehicle and transportation technology development in north america and the number one market for transit in the u.s. the company also operates a west coast manufacturing facility in the city of industry california . proterra s east coast manufacturing and engineering operations are located in greenville south carolina and sits directly outside cu icar . cu icar s 250 acre campus its research is focused entirely on industry needs and economic development gives proterra access to research and development resources that help further development of its ev buses and charging stations . current operations edit a proterra catalyst operated by king county metro . current operations include citation needed location agency vehicles san antonio tx via metropolitan transit 3 pomona ca foothill transit 15 louisville ky transit authority of river city 10 worcester ma worcester regional transit authority 6 reno nv regional transportation commission of washoe county 4 seneca sc clemson area transit 4 stockton ca san joaquin regional transit district 2 tallahassee fl starmetro 5 nashville tn nashville metropolitan transit authority 7 seattle wa king county metro 3 16 17 lexington ky lexington transit authority 5 duluth mn duluth transit authority 6 dallas tx dallas area rapid transit 7 porterville ca porterville transit 2 missoula mt asum transportation 2 18 investors edit since inception proterra has been funded through fta grants as well as venture capital funding . since 2011 proterra has raised more than 130 million in private equity funding . investors include kleiner perkins caufield & byers a venture capital private equity firm based in silicon valley . 5 general motors ventures llc . 5 mitsui & co. global investment inc. a subsidiary of mitsui & co. ltd. citation needed vision ridge partners llc a boston based organization that advises and invests in transformative growth companies with a focus on sustainability . 19 88 green ventures llc an investment firm that manages asset capabilities to assist emerging green companies . 19 tao capital partners invests in technology alternative energy healthcare consumer and real estate businesses that have a sustainable positive impact . 5 see also edit companies portal byd auto references edit proterra inc . linkedin . retrieved february 15 2015 . peters adele october 2 2015 . meet the electric bus that could push every other polluting bus off the road . co.exist . retrieved april 18 2016 . clean fuels grant program 5308 . us federal transit administration . retrieved april 18 2016 . eudy leslie 2012 . fta s tigger program supporting sustainable transit operations pdf . sustainability and public transportation workshop . colorado us . retrieved april 18 2016 . a b c d vance ashlee june 20 2014 . proterra an electric bus maker aims to follow the tesla model . bloomberg . us . retrieved april 18 2016 . proterra joins the san francisco bay area s highly touted transportation and tech hubs . us proterra . october 5 2015 . retrieved april 18 2016 . l.a. gets world s first rapid charge electric bus . techchunks . us . september 20 2010 . retrieved april 18 2016 . be 35 . us altoona bus research and testing center . retrieved april 18 2016 . partial sturaa test 12 year 500 000 mile bus from proterra inc. model be35 pdf . us altoona bus research and testing center . may 2013 . p. 39 . retrieved april 18 2016 . argonne greet model 2012 assuming 36 000 mi 58 000 km per year and fuel consumption of 3.86 miles per us gallon 1.64 km l diesel and 3.27 miles per us gallon 1.39 km l diesel equivalent for cng . california city first to get 2nd generation proterra electric bus . electric bus manufacturers byd and proterra are making serious moves . proterra opens its electric vehicle fast charging technology to mass transit industry . proterra . june 28 2016 . retrieved august 4 2016 . based on testing done at altoona for manufacturers currently in operation transit bus life cycle cost and year 2007 emissions estimation . july 2 2007 . p. 11 . king county launches next generation of electric trolleys and previews new battery powered bus press release . king county metro . august 18 2015 . retrieved september 7 2015 . lindblom mike august 18 2015 . 5 new trolleys arrive as part of metro s replacement plan . the seattle times . retrieved september 7 2015 . um orders zero emission electric buses