By now those who live in the Greater Toronto Region have heard about the "lemon" hybrid Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) Buses. There is much talk amongst the TTC commissioners about the fact that these buses do not meet expectations.
Batteries that should be lasting five years are surviving only about 18 months, which affects service because those buses have to come off the road for repairs, he said.
The hybrids have also failed to live up to projected fuel savings because the technology is most beneficial in stop-and-go downtown traffic and there are a limited number of such routes, Ross said. Many TTC routes operate in less busy residential neighbourhoods.
It was hoped the hybrid buses would save 20 to 30 per cent on fuel but they are achieving only about a 10 per cent saving, he said. (From the Toronto Star: October 18, 2008)
Now understand, I don't have any insight into the contracts that were signed and agreed upon, but I have negotiated multi-million dollar deals for equipment and you don't just take the marketing hype as gospel! You ask the provider to guarantee that the equipment will be as "promised". This can be achieved through various standard approaches, but at the end of the day, it comes down to "put your money where your mouth is". If you say the batteries will last for 5 years, then guess what? When they don't -- the provider will absorb the cost of any retrofit, as well as any requirement to put other temporary buses on the routes for the period of time this takes (and by the way...the provider is on the hook for finding these temporary buses).
And what is this about the fuel consumption? Where is the due diligence that should be done by the city -- this is like looking at a car that says it gets 26 km to the litre -- and then in small print it says but city driving is only 12 km to the litre.
As a consumer, I read the fine print. As a procurement professional, I not only read the fine print, but I ensure that due diligence is done on the "promises" and then contractually bind the provider -- if they indicate this amount of fuel will be saved by using their buses then questions need to be asked how this number will be validated, what the experience has been in similar cities, during peak times. And more.
Obviously, none of these was done, and the politicos raced to get the payout from the Federal Government -- which provided financing for these hybrids.
Once again, it shows there is no such thing as a free lunch! The money given by the Federal Government will now be a small drop in the bucket compared with the issues that the TTC is facing to deal with the "lemons".
Now understand, I don't have any insight into the contracts that were signed and agreed upon, but I have negotiated multi-million dollar deals for equipment and you don't just take the marketing hype as gospel! You ask the provider to guarantee that the equipment will be as "promised". This can be achieved through various standard approaches, but at the end of the day, it comes down to "put your money where your mouth is". If you say the batteries will last for 5 years, then guess what? When they don't -- the provider will absorb the cost of any retrofit, as well as any requirement to put other temporary buses on the routes for the period of time this takes (and by the way...the provider is on the hook for finding these temporary buses).
And what is this about the fuel consumption? Where is the due diligence that should be done by the city -- this is like looking at a car that says it gets 26 km to the litre -- and then in small print it says but city driving is only 12 km to the litre.
As a consumer, I read the fine print. As a procurement professional, I not only read the fine print, but I ensure that due diligence is done on the "promises" and then contractually bind the provider -- if they indicate this amount of fuel will be saved by using their buses then questions need to be asked how this number will be validated, what the experience has been in similar cities, during peak times. And more.
Obviously, none of these was done, and the politicos raced to get the payout from the Federal Government -- which provided financing for these hybrids.
Once again, it shows there is no such thing as a free lunch! The money given by the Federal Government will now be a small drop in the bucket compared with the issues that the TTC is facing to deal with the "lemons".
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