China’s state-run press had rare reason to celebrate recently, as a trade war continues to with the United States. While President Trump has nailed their aluminum and steel industry to the wall with his tariffs, the Chinese electric bus industry has been doing just fine.
The Xinhua News Agency celebrated a big purchase of zero-emission buses from the Chinese electric automaker Build Your Dreams on Monday. Their new customer? The state of Georgia and the city of Atlanta.
“BYD is excited to be working with customers in Georgia and we look forward to growing our presence in the state and improving the air quality for Georgians,” said Bobby Hill, vice president of North America for BYD Coach and Bus.
Everyone loves clean air. Everyone does not, however, love these electric buses. They have trouble chugging up hills, difficulty driving long distances, and a generally hard time staying on the road. Some cities have already had to pull their electric fleets. Others have returned the electric vehicles. Now Georgia will struggle with those same obstacles.
The fact that Georgia has entered the electric market is particularly interesting. One expects cities like Albuquerque and Los Angeles to drop millions on the novelty environmental fleets, not a deep red state in the South that traditionally votes Republican and cares more for business than green pipe dreams. But, to say the least, government spending doesn’t always reflect the priorities of the taxpayer.
Meanwhile, this green initiative is undercutting the trade war in a small but significant way. And that is something for the Chinese press to celebrate.
