NREL is a national laboratory of the U.S. Department of Energy

Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy

Operated by the Alliance for Sustainable Energy, LLC

This report is available at no cost from the National Renewable Energy

Laboratory (NREL) at www.nrel.gov/publications.

Contract No. DE-AC36-08GO28308

Technical Report

NREL/TP-5400-73381

April 2019

Jamaica Urban Transit Company 

Drive-Cycle Analysis

Mark Singer and Caley Johnson

National Renewable Energy Laboratory
NREL is a national laboratory of the U.S. Department of Energy

Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy

Operated by the Alliance for Sustainable Energy, LLC

This report is available at no cost from the National Renewable Energy

Laboratory (NREL) at www.nrel.gov/publications.

Contract No. DE-AC36-08GO28308

National Renewable Energy Laboratory

15013 Denver West Parkway

Golden, CO 80401

303-275-3000 • www.nrel.gov

Technical Report

NREL/TP-5400-73381

April 2019

Jamaica Urban Transit Company 

Drive-Cycle Analysis

Mark Singer and Caley Johnson

National Renewable Energy Laboratory

Suggested Citation

Singer, Mark, and Caley Johnson. 2019. Jamaica Urban Transit Company Drive-Cycle 

Analysis. Golden, CO: National Renewable Energy Laboratory. NREL/TP-5400-73381. 

https://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy19osti/73381.pdf.
NOTICE

This work was authored by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, operated by Alliance for Sustainable 

Energy, LLC, for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) under Contract No. DE-AC36-08GO28308. Funding 

provided by the Department of State, U.S Department of State Office of Global Change in the Bureau of Oceans, 

and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs and U.S Department of Energy Office of International Affairs. 

The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the views of the DOE or the U.S. Government.

This report is available at no cost from the National Renewable 

Energy Laboratory (NREL) at www.nrel.gov/publications.

U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) reports produced after 1991 

and a growing number of pre-1991 documents are available 

free via www.OSTI.gov.

Cover Photos by Dennis Schroeder: (clockwise, left to right) NREL 51934, NREL 45897, NREL 42160, NREL 45891, NREL 48097, 

NREL 46526.

NREL prints on paper that contains recycled content.
iii

This report is available at no cost from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) at www.nrel.gov/publications.

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank Gerald Lindo of the U. S. Agency for International Development

for his guidance throughout this project. They would also like to thank the following people for 

sharing their insight and offering guidance and valuable data: Selena Mohammed-Wilson and 

Carla Barrett (Jamaican Urban Transit Company); Michael Saunderson (National Works 

Agency); and Adam Duran, Eric Miller, and Lauren Lynch (National Renewable Energy 

Laboratory). This report has benefitted greatly from these people’s help, but any mistakes are 

entirely the authors’ responsibility.
iv

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List of Acronyms

BEB battery electric bus

DRIVE Drive-Cycle Rapid Investigation, Visualization, and Evaluation (analysis tool)

FASTSim Future Automotive Systems Technology Simulator

JUTC Jamaica Urban Transit Company

km kilometer

kph kilometers per hour

kWh kilowatt-hour

NREL National Renewable Energy Laboratory
v

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Table of Contents

List of Figures ............................................................................................................................................ vi

List of Tables .............................................................................................................................................. vi

1 Background........................................................................................................................................... 1

2 Route Descriptions............................................................................................................................... 2

3 Route Statistics..................................................................................................................................... 5

4 Sample Route Days ............................................................................................................................ 10

4.1 Portmore to Kingston Sample Days............................................................................................ 10

4.2 Spanish Town to Kingston Sample Days.................................................................................... 11

4.3 Spanish Town to Denbigh Sample Day ...................................................................................... 12

4.4 Rockfort to Stony Hill Sample Days........................................................................................... 12

5 Estimated Battery Electric Bus Fuel Economy ............................................................................... 14

6 Discussion........................................................................................................................................... 15

Appendix A. Bus Route Traces.......................................................................................................... 17
vi

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List of Figures

Figure 1. Naggo Head Drive R.A.B. to Half Way Tree Transport Centre geography.................................. 3

Figure 2. Spanish Town to Kingston geography........................................................................................... 3

Figure 3. Half Way Tree Transport Centre to Stony Hill geography............................................................ 4

Figure 4. JUTC bus stops per kilometer and average driving speed............................................................. 6

Figure 5. Fleet DNA average driving speed comparison.............................................................................. 7

Figure 6. Fleet DNA stops per kilometer comparison .................................................................................. 8

Figure 7. Fleet DNA average driving speed and number of stops................................................................ 8

Figure 8. Fleet DNA kinetic intensity and average driving speed ................................................................ 9

Figure 9. FASTSim BEB fuel economy estimates (kWh/km).................................................................... 14

Figure A1.1. Bus 13D1864 Traces 1 and 2................................................................................................. 17

Figure A1.2. Bus 13P1889 Traces 1 and 2 (identical)................................................................................ 17

Figure A1.3. Bus 14D1936 Trace 1 ............................................................................................................ 18

Figure A1.4. Bus 14D1949 Trace 1 ............................................................................................................ 18

Figure A2.1. Bus 15D1988 Trace – Missing segments .............................................................................. 19

Figure A2.2. Bus 15D1991 Trace – 5-second data ..................................................................................... 19

Figure A3.1. Bus 13P1888 Trace................................................................................................................ 20

Figure A3.2. Bus 14D1905 Trace ............................................................................................................... 20

Figure A3.3. Bus 15D1994 Trace ............................................................................................................... 20

Figure A3.4. Bus 15D1995 Trace ............................................................................................................... 21

Figure A3.5. Bus 15D1998 Trace ............................................................................................................... 21

Figure A4.1. Bus 16T0026 Traces 1 and 2 ................................................................................................. 22

Figure A5.1. Bus 15D1992 Trace ............................................................................................................... 22

Figure A5.2. Bus 16T0024 Trace................................................................................................................ 23

List of Tables

Table 1. Bus Route Geographies................................................................................................................... 2

Table 2. Bus Drive-Cycle Statistics.............................................................................................................. 5

Table 3. BYD Bus Technical Specifications .............................................................................................. 10

Table 4. Portmore to Kingston Bus Sample Days ...................................................................................... 11

Table 5. Spanish Town to Kingston Bus Sample Days .............................................................................. 11

Table 6. Spanish Town to Denbigh Sample Day (December 11, 2017)..................................................... 12

Table 7. Bus 16T0024 Rockfort to Stony Hill Sample Days...................................................................... 12
1

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1 Background

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) partnered with the Jamaica Urban Transit 

Company (JUTC) to investigate the suitability of implementing battery electric buses (BEBs) on 

JUTC bus routes in the Kingston vicinity. Suitability depends partially on vehicle drive-cycle 

data including vehicle speed at any given second over a time period of use. In December 2017, 

NREL captured drive-cycle data for select buses to define the utilization patterns of existing 

buses and to estimate which routes could be best suited for electrification based on (1) the ability 

of available BEB options to cover the route distance while allowing sufficient time to recharge, 

and (2) the route drive-cycle statistics that would allow for the greatest energy efficiency gains 

from switching from a diesel bus to a BEB. Typically drive-cycles reflecting more stop-and-start 

driving provide better opportunities for electric-drive vehicles that regenerate electricity during 

braking.
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2 Route Descriptions

NREL worked with JUTC to install data loggers on JUTC buses to track their operation from 

December 9 through December 15, 2017. The data loggers captured 1-Hz data second-bysecond, tracking the vehicles’ speed and global positioning system location as latitude and 

longitude. Prior to deployment of the data loggers, NREL worked with JUTC to determine which 

buses covered routes known to have congestion issues and may be of most interest for possible 

electrification or other efficiency efforts. Table 1 lists the buses that were tracked. Appendix A 

includes maps of all route trace data.

Table 1. Bus Route Geographies

Vehicle ID

Vehicle 

Year Vehicle Make

Vehicle 

Model Route Geography

13D1864 2013 Volvo VDL Portmore to Kingston

13P1889 2013 Volvo VDL Portmore to Kingston

14D1936 2014 Volvo VDL Portmore to Kingston

14D1949 2014 Volvo VDL Portmore to Kingston

15D1988 2015 Volvo VDL Portmore to Kingston – Missing segments

15D1991 2015 Volvo VDL Portmore to Kingston – 5-second data

13P1888 2013 Volvo VDL Spanish Town to Kingston

13P1898 2013 Volvo VDL Spanish Town to Kingston

14D1905 2014 Volvo VDL Spanish Town to Kingston

15D1994 2015 Volvo VDL Spanish Town to Kingston

15D1995 2015 Volvo VDL Spanish Town to Kingston

15D1998 2015 Volvo VDL Spanish Town to Kingston

15D1992 2015 Volvo VDL Spanish Town to Kingston and Montego Bay

16T0026 2016 Golden Dragon Spanish Town to Denbigh

16T0024 2016 Golden Dragon Rockfort to Kingston to Stony Hill 

Most of the tracked buses covered routes between Portmore and Kingstown and routes from 

Spanish Town to Kingston. However, several buses covered more diverse geographies beyond 

these areas. One of the Spanish Town to Kingston buses, 15D1992, included significant travel 

north to Montego Bay. A single bus, 16T0026, operated on a route from Spanish Town west to 

Denbigh, and a single bus, 16T0024, operated out of Rockfort and covered a geography from 

Kingston north to Stony Hill and beyond to Above Rocks and the Border Terminus bus station.

The National Works Agency provided NREL with three primary road segments of interest for 

analysis efforts based on areas of known congestion issues that might benefit from efficient 

vehicle technologies. These included a segment from Naggo Head Drive R.A.B. to the Half Way 

Tree Transport Centre with a focus on Hagley Road from Three Miles to the Half Way Tree 

Transport Centre. The logged bus routes from Portmore to Kingston primarily covered these 

segments (Figure 1). 
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Figure 1. Naggo Head Drive R.A.B. to Half Way Tree Transport Centre geography (Google 2019)

The second segment of interest was from Spanish Town to the Down Town area of Kingston, 

with a focus on the Mandela Highway from the Inland Revenue bus station to the Opposite New 

Haven bus station. The logged bus routes from Spanish Town to Kingston primarily covered 

these geographies (Figure 2). 

Figure 2. Spanish Town to Kingston geography (Google 2019)

The third segment of interest is from the Half Way Tree Transport Centre north to Stony Hill. 

This segment was covered by bus 16T0024, which operated out of the Rockfort bus depot and 

covered Kingston and the area north to Stony Hill and beyond (Figure 3).
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Figure 3. Half Way Tree Transport Centre to Stony Hill geography (Google 2019)
5

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3 Route Statistics

NREL used the Drive-Cycle Rapid Investigation, Visualization, and Evaluation (DRIVE)

analysis tool (NREL 2013) to analyze the JUTC bus drive cycles. DRIVE accepts the global 

positioning system data captured by the data loggers and cleans the data by removing erroneous 

data (e.g., sudden extremely high or low velocities) and repairing short periods in the log where 

data are missing. DRIVE then provides summary statistics of the resulting drive cycles. Table 2 

displays the primary drive-cycle statistics studied, which are related to distance traveled, speed, 

and number of stops. Table 2 introduces kinetic intensity values, which will be discussed in more 

detail later in this section.

Table 2. Bus Drive-Cycle Statistics

Group Vehicle ID

Distance

Traveled

(km)

Average

Speed

(kph)

Maximum

Speed

(kph)

Total

Stops

Stops per

Kilometer

Kinetic

Intensity

(1/km)

Portmore to 

Kingston

13D1864 - Trace 1 380 30 92 740 2.0 1.0

13D1864 - Trace 2 507 31 73 901 1.8 0.9

13P1889 - Trace 1 210 28 74 452 2.2 1.0

13P1889 - Trace 2 536 30 74 997 1.9 1.0

14D1936 497 31 85 979 2.0 1.0

14D1949 171 35 71 254 1.5 0.9

Portmore to

Kingston Overall 2,301 30 92 4,334 1.9 1.0

Spanish 

Town to 

Kingston

13P1888 197 24 73 551 2.8 1.2

14D1905 586 27 93 1,297 2.2 1.1

15D1994 167 30 73 331 2.0 0.7

15D1995 316 27 71 705 2.2 1.0

15D1998 569 31 68 892 1.6 1.1

Spanish Town to

Kingston Overall 1,835 28 93 3,782 2.1 1.0

Spanish 

Town to 

Denbigh

16T0026 - Trace 1 804 32 71 914 1.1 0.8

16T0026 - Trace 2 531 32 71 594 1.1 0.9

Spanish Town to 

Denbigh Overall 1,334 32 71 1,508 1.1 0.9

Montego Bay 15D1992 918 33 89 1,360 1.5 0.6

Stony Hill 16T0024 497 24 68 1,024 2.1 2.1

Two of the buses that logged travel from Portmore to Kingston were excluded: the logger for bus 

15D1991 captured data every 5 seconds, and bus 15D1988 travelled large distances where the 

signal was lost by the logger, resulting in large gaps in the captured cycle.
6

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Data loggers were deployed primarily covering two time periods. The initial deployment covered 

December 9 through December 12, 2017. The second deployment covered December 13 through 

December 17, 2017. Daily averages cannot be inferred from the totals in Table 2 as the buses 

were not equally active across all days and the logs did not all start and stop at the same time for 

each bus. Section 4 covers individual day statistics. Three buses (13D1864, 16T0026, and 

16T0026) were covered during both deployments. These separate deployments are referred to as 

Trace 1 and Trace 2 in Table 2. The data for the individual bus traces for Portmore to Kingston, 

Spanish Town to Kingston, and Spanish Town to Denbigh were analyzed individually and as a 

combined drive cycle for each group.

Overall, 6,886 kilometers (km) were covered by the logs summarized in Table 2. The Portmore 

to Kingston and the Spanish Town to Kingston routes covered 60% of the total distance. The 

average speed was calculated based on non-idle driving speeds while the buses were in motion. 

The routes did not vary greatly by average speed, and most logs averaged between 27 and 33 

kilometers per hour (kph). The Stony Hill route had the lowest average speed (24 kph), and one 

of the Portmore to Kingston traces had the highest average speed (35 kph). The average speed of 

the overall Portmore to Kingston drive cycle was higher than the average speed of the overall 

Spanish Town to Kingston cycle. The Denbigh route had a higher average speed than either of 

the primary groups. Average speed can be greatly affected by the number of stops a bus makes. 

DRIVE calculates the average number of stops per kilometer for the buses. A stop in this 

instance is any time where a bus comes to a stop and does not represent just the official 

passenger stops. The majority of the JUTC buses averaged between 1.1 and 2.2 stops per 

kilometer. One of the Spanish Town to Kingston buses averaged a higher 2.8 stops per kilometer.

Figure 4 shows the relationship of the JUTC bus average driving speed and their number of stops 

per kilometer. In general, those buses that stop more often have a lower average driving speed. 

These represent drive cycles that include more stop-and-start driving than those cycles where 

average driving speed is higher due to fewer stops.

Figure 4. JUTC bus stops per kilometer and average driving speed 

NREL maintains Fleet DNA (NREL 2018), a database of commercial fleet data from across a 

broad number of applications on routes in the United States. NREL used the Fleet DNA database 

to measure how the JUTC buses compare to example cycles of other mass transit buses. At the 
7

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time of this study, there were 472 days of driving from 19 mass transit buses included in the 

available Fleet DNA data.

Figure 5 shows that JUTC buses overall have a similar average driving speed in comparison to 

the buses in the Fleet DNA database where buses averaged 34 kph. The slowest of the JUTC bus 

routes studied, Stony Hill, is found to also have a relatively slow speed compared to the transit 

buses captured in the Fleet DNA database.

Figure 5. Fleet DNA average driving speed comparison

Figure 6 shows that JUTC buses generally stop more frequently than the average Fleet DNA 

mass transit bus, which averages 1.3 stops per kilometer. The Spanish Town to Kingston and 

Stony Hill routes are shown to have stops per kilometer higher than 87% of buses in the Fleet 

DNA database.
8

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Figure 6. Fleet DNA stops per kilometer comparison

Figure 7 shows that when JUTC buses are compared to buses more broadly on the combination 

of these metrics, JUTC buses have similar average driving speeds for their number of stops. This 

would indicate the JUTC buses are accelerating and/or decelerating similarly to the buses in the 

Fleet DNA database. 

Figure 7. Fleet DNA average driving speed and number of stops

Kinetic intensity, as shown in Table 2, measures the amount of stop-and-start driving in the drive 

cycle. The metric is calculated by dividing the characteristic acceleration of the drive cycle by 

the aerodynamic speed. The characteristic acceleration describes the energy used to accelerate 
9

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the vehicle, and the aerodynamic speed describes the energy consumed by drag forces (O’Keefe 

et al. 2007). The higher stop-and-start driving in drive cycles with higher kinetic intensities can 

be beneficial for electric-drive vehicles that regenerate electricity during braking. In this way, 

identifying drive cycles with higher kinetic intensities can help determine which cycles would be 

good candidates for electrification.

Figure 8 compares the kinetic intensities of the JUTC bus drive cycles with the Fleet DNA 

database. Most JUTC bus kinetic intensities ranged from 0.6 to 1.2 (in units of 1/kilometer), 

which is lower than or equal to the average Fleet DNA bus kinetic intensity of 1.2. However, the 

Stony Hill route had a comparatively high kinetic intensity at 2.1 (in units of 1/kilometer). This 

would suggest the Stony Hill route might be a good route to focus on for further BEB 

deployment evaluation. It should be noted that at the time of this study elevation changes were 

not incorporated in the drive-cycle analyses. Much of the JUTC bus routes do not cover terrain 

with large elevation changes. However, the Stony Hill route and the Montego Bay route include 

significant elevation changes that could affect the results in a more detailed analysis.

Figure 8. Fleet DNA kinetic intensity and average driving speed
10

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4 Sample Route Days

BEBs are constrained by the driving range of the battery and the time required to recharge the 

battery. A BEB deployment may be most successful when the bus operates a fixed route where 

the bus will not need to travel beyond the range of the battery pack and the route schedule will 

allow the bus to return to a charging location for a sufficient period to recharge the battery. 

For the purposes of this study, NREL considered the bus options available from BYD and the 

bus technical specifications detailed on the BYD website (BYD Motors 2018). BYD buses were 

chosen for this study due to the company’s existing presence in Latin America (BYD Motors 

2018). Other leading BEB manufacturers such as Proterra were more focused in the United 

States at the time of the study (Proterra 2019). The specifications as used in this report are meant 

as a starting point for evaluation. Onsite testing of specific vehicles of interest should be 

considered at an appropriate time to validate ranges under local driving conditions. Table 3 

shows the ranges of available BYD buses at the time of the study were from 232 to 322 

kilometers. 

Table 3. BYD Bus Technical Specifications

BYD Bus

Length

(meters)

Curb Weight

(kg)

Range

(km)

Charging 

Time (hr)

K11 18.5 21,600 322 3

K9 12.5 14,000 259 3−4

K9s 10.9 13,000 233 3−4

K7 9.4 9,698 232 2−3

Note: Data from BYD Motors, http://en.byd.com/bus/ accessed 7/13/2018

NREL investigated sample routes across the different bus geographies to determine if the 

reported BYD bus ranges would be sufficient for specific daily driving distances. BYD reported

the required time for a full charge to be between 2 and 4 hours depending on the specific bus. 

NREL assumed most charging would occur overnight or while buses were out of service. 

4.1 Portmore to Kingston Sample Days

A majority of the Portmore to Kingston routes were covered by buses 13D1864 and 13P1889. 

The route traces for these vehicles are included in Appendix A. The traces for 13P1889 show a 

more compact route compared to those of 13D1864 during the period tracked. Both buses 

covered the Naggo Head Drive R.A.B. to the Half Way Tree Transport Centre segment of 

interest, while bus 13D1864 also covered the Hagley Road segment of interest.

Table 4 shows sample days for the buses of interest. Bus 13P1889 appeared to have two primary 

active trips with a period of over 2 hours where the bus sat in the Portmore depot. The bus started 

the morning shortly before 6:00 AM, was back in the Portmore depot between 11:30 AM and 

1:30 PM, at which time it returned to service until shortly after 8:00 PM. The bus was then out of 

service until the next morning. In total, the bus traveled 208 kilometers for the day. During the 

active periods of trip 1 and trip 2, the data loggers recorded nearly 5 hours where the bus was not 

moving and was sitting idle. This is separate from the time between the trips and is understood to 
11

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be the times where the bus was in use but stopped in traffic, at passenger pick-up locations, or 

potentially in the depot.

Table 4. Portmore to Kingston Bus Sample Days

Bus Number

Date: Trip

Start

Location

End

Location

Start

Time

End

Time

Total 

Time 

(hr:min)

Distance 

Traveled 

(km)

Idle

Time 

(hr:min)

13P1889 

Dec. 13, 2017: Trip 1 Portmore Portmore 5:50 AM 11:24 AM 5:33 103 2:15

13P1889

Dec. 13, 2017: Trip 2 Portmore Portmore 1:38 PM 8:07 PM 6:28 105 2:35

13D1864

Dec. 11, 2017: Trip 1 Portmore Portmore 5:35 AM 10:36 PM 17:00 311 7:00

Bus 13D1864 operated in a similar route geography as bus 13P1889, but there was more 

variability in the time of use across the days of operation. Table 4 details an example day where 

the bus began operation at about 5:30 AM in Portmore, operated for 17 hours, and finished the 

day back in Portmore. The bus covered 311 kilometers and was idle for 7 hours over the day.

If charging were available at the Portmore depot, assuming a BEB started the day at full charge 

with the range of 259 kilometers such as the BYD K9, the hypothetical BEB would be able to 

cover the full day of travel by 13P1889. In this example, the bus would not need to charge during 

the day but would have an opportunity for a partial charge between trips. The bus would then 

need to charge after both trips overnight to reach full charge for the next day.

The same hypothetical BEB would not be able to cover the 311 kilometers of bus 13D1864. 

However, the 7 hours of idle time recorded by the logger may point to an opportunity to charge 

during the time of service if a significant portion of that time were in the depot.

4.2 Spanish Town to Kingston Sample Days

Buses 13P1888 and 15D1995 covered the Mandela Highway segment of interest while covering 

the Spanish Town to Kingston primary route of interest. Table 5 shows sample days for these 

buses.

Table 5. Spanish Town to Kingston Bus Sample Days

Bus Number

Date: Trip

Start

Location

End

Location

Start

Time

End

Time

Total 

Time 

(hr:min)

Distance 

Traveled 

(km)

Idle

Time

(hr:min)

13P1888

Dec. 11, 2017: Trip 1

Spanish 

Town

Spanish 

Town 5:57 AM 10:02 PM 16:05 196 7:54

15D1995

Dec 12, 2017: Trip 1

Spanish 

Town

Spanish 

Town 5:56 AM 9:54 PM 15:58 205 6:22

The days for these buses were very similar. The buses were active throughout the day from 

shortly before 6:00 AM and until completing their service near 10:00 PM. Each bus covered 

about 200 kilometers for their respective days. 
12

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If charging were available at the Spanish Town depot, the hypothetical BEB with a range of 259 

kilometers would be able to complete the days of service for each of these buses. The buses 

would need to charge overnight to start the next day with a full charge. The buses sat idle 

between 6 to 8 hours in each of these days. If a significant portion of that time were spent in the 

same depot, there may be an opportunity for a partial recharge during the day.

4.3 Spanish Town to Denbigh Sample Day

Although not traveling a primary route of interest, a sample day of bus 16T0026 was 

investigated. The bus started the morning at 5:02 AM at the Spanish Town depot, traveled 131 

kilometers, was out of service in Denbigh from 9:38 AM until 2:28 PM, or nearly 5 hours, and 

returned to service, completing 134 kilometers of travel and ending the day at the Spanish Town 

Depot at 8:55 PM. One sample day is presented in Table 6.

Table 6. Spanish Town to Denbigh Sample Day (December 11, 2017)

Bus 

Number

Trip

Start 

Location

End 

Location

Start 

Time End Time

Total 

Time 

(hr:min)

Distance 

Travelled 

(km)

Idle 

Time 

(hr:min)

16T0026

Trip 1 Spanish Town Denbigh 5:02 AM 9:38 AM 4:36 131 0:52

16T0026

Trip 2 Denbigh Spanish Town 2:28 PM 8:55 PM 6:27 134 1:41

If a charging station were available at the Spanish Town depot, the hypothetical BEB with a 

range of 259 kilometers would not be able to complete the sample day total of 265 kilometers for 

the Denbigh route without charging during the day. The extended stay in Denbigh may allow for 

additional charging time if a charging station were available at the Denbigh location. The bus sat 

idle for a relatively short period of time while in service, providing little potential for additional 

charging during the times of service. The bus would need to charge overnight to start the next 

day with a full charge.

4.4 Rockfort to Stony Hill Sample Days

Bus 16T0024 from the Rockfort depot completed routes covering the Stony Hill route of interest. 

Two sample days are presented in Table 7.

Table 7. Bus 16T0024 Rockfort to Stony Hill Sample Days

Date

Trip Number

Start 

Location

End 

Location

Start 

Time End Time

Total 

Time 

(hr:min)

Distance 

Traveled 

(km)

Idle 

Time 

(hr:min)

Dec. 13, 2017 

Trip 1 Rockfort Rockfort 4:30 AM 4:13 PM 11:42 213 3:39

Dec. 14, 2017 

Trip 1 Rockfort Half Way Tree 5:10 AM 11:01 AM 5:51 105 1:16

Dec. 14, 2017 

Trip 2

Half Way 

Tree Rockfort 2:08 PM 8:30 PM 6:21 104 1:07
13

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The bus schedule showed variability across the two days. The first day began early, at 4:30 AM, 

completed 213 kilometers of travel, and finished the day at 4:13 PM. Across the nearly 12 hours 

of continuous service, the bus was idle for 3 hours and 39 minutes.

The second sample day comprised two periods of service. The first started at 5:10 AM, 

completed at 11:01 AM, and covered 105 kilometers. The bus was then out of service for 3 hours 

and 7 minutes at the Half Way Tree location. The second period started at 2:08 PM, finished at 

8:30 PM, and covered 104 kilometers. The periods covered a combined 209 kilometers. The bus 

was idle for a little over an hour during each period of service.

If a charging station were available at the Rockfort depot, the hypothetical 259-kilometer BEB 

would be able to complete both days of service. The bus would need to charge overnight for the 

next day of service. The bus may benefit from a charging station at the Half Way Tree location if 

the bus regularly stops at that location for a long period. The bus had relatively few idle periods 

during the times of service, which would provide little opportunity to charge during service 

without schedule adjustment.
14

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5 Estimated Battery Electric Bus Fuel Economy

NREL investigated how BEB fuel economy might vary across the drive cycles analyzed using 

the Future Automotive Systems Technology Simulator (FASTSim) tool (Brooker et al. 2015). 

FASTSim accepts a drive cycle and estimates vehicle performance based on user inputs of a 

wide range of vehicle attributes and drivetrains. Concurrent to the development of this analysis, 

the NREL FASTSim team has been developing a BEB model in FASTSim based on a Proterra 

12.1-meter BEB (Proterra 2019). 

NREL has used this FASTSim BEB model to develop estimates of fuel economy for a 

hypothetical BEB operating on the JUTC drive cycles. The average fuel economies reported are 

designed to represent the periods of time the vehicle was in motion. Idle time is not incorporated 

into estimates. At this stage in the analysis, the estimates are not intended to predict final BEB 

performance. Rather the estimates are intended to show which drive cycles may result in better 

BEB performance and inform further analysis of possible JUTC bus electrification. 

Figure 9 includes the resulting kilowatt-hour (kWh) per kilometer estimates for each of the bus 

drive-cycles analyzed. As expected, there is variability within each geographic group across the 

individual drive cycles. The Portmore to Kingston and the Spanish Town to Kingston fuel 

economies show similar ranges across their drive cycles, and both overall cycles resulted in a 

1.1-kWh/km estimate. The Spanish Town to Denbigh route resulted in an estimate of 0.9 

kWh/km. The Stony Hill route provided the best estimate at 0.8 kWh/km.

Figure 9. FASTSim BEB fuel economy estimates (kWh/km)
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This report is available at no cost from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) at www.nrel.gov/publications.

6 Discussion

The NREL JUTC vehicle analysis provides an initial overview of the dynamics of the JUTC bus 

routes studied and highlights areas that may benefit from further investigation.

In general, the JUTC buses travel on average at a similar speed but stop more often than the 19 

buses and 472 days of travel captured in the Fleet DNA database of mass transit buses. This 

would indicate that the JUTC buses are operating in a similar but somewhat more aggressive 

driving environment with more stop-and-start driving than the United States drive cycles 

captured in the Fleet DNA database. The kinetic intensities of some of the routes, especially the 

Stony Hill route, were elevated, which further highlights stop-and-start driving along these 

routes. Finally, the Stony Hill drive cycle resulted in the best BEB fuel economy estimate 

compared to the other routes.

The daily operations of the buses were sampled to determine the ability for hypothetical BEBs to 

charge overnight at their primary depot and cover the necessary distances of the current bus 

routes. Sample days in the Portmore to Kingston, Spanish Town to Kingston, and Stony Hill 

drive cycles showed it would be possible for a hypothetical BEB with a range of 259 kilometers 

to cover the necessary distance of the sample days. The Spanish Town to Denbigh route would 

require the hypothetical BEB to charge during the day to complete the distance. Any deployment 

of BEBs would require close management of how the BEBs were scheduled within a set of 

routes. As an example, the sample Portmore to Kingston routes showed the hypothetical BEB 

would not be able to cover the required distance of all the days studied. BEB use would need to 

be constrained to the routes within the range of the bus. 

Beyond the operations of the buses discussed in this analysis, the JUTC will need to investigate 

charging infrastructure requirements and impacts. While specific charging infrastructure can 

vary depending on the specific buses implemented, working closely with the local utility should

help the JUTC to appropriately site the required infrastructure and determine the compatibility of 

the charging load and the grid. Completing this analysis well in advance of any implementation 

efforts will allow the JUTC to minimize costs associated with installing charging equipment and 

charging buses.

This study has begun the process to determine the suitability of deploying BEBs in the JUTC 

system. Ultimately an onsite test of a BEB may be necessary to better understand performance in 

the local environment, but further model-based analysis could provide additional learnings such 

as the following:

• The JUTC bus route variability is not fully understood. The sample bus data logs often 

covered less than two full days of bus activity. To raise confidence in the assessments, 

data covering more days would be helpful.

• Modeled fuel economy estimates were based on an existing model of a 12.1-meter BEB. 

The FASTSim model could be updated to account for several factors including:

o The technical specifications of a specific BEB under consideration.

o Elevation and grade changes for routes: The model used in this analysis assumed 

a flat route, but grade could significantly impact fuel economy.
16

This report is available at no cost from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) at www.nrel.gov/publications.

o Variable passenger counts and auxiliary loads: Variable passenger counts and 

auxiliary loads such as air conditioning use can impact BEB range and efficiency.

• Modeling a standard diesel bus’s fuel economy on the JUTC drive cycles would allow for 

a comparison between the diesel fuel economy and the estimated BEB fuel economy. The 

BEB fuel economies presented in this analysis provide insight into where a BEB might be 

most efficient. Comparing these to estimated diesel fuel economies would highlight 

where the largest benefit for shifting to a BEB could be found. These results could inform 

a study of the total cost of ownership of the two technologies, including vehicle 

acquisition, fueling, maintenance, and infrastructure over the life of the vehicles.
17

This report is available at no cost from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) at www.nrel.gov/publications.

Appendix A. Bus Route Traces

A.1 Portmore to Kingston 

 

Figure A1.1. Bus 13D1864 Traces 1 and 2 (Google 2018)

Figure A1.2. Bus 13P1889 Traces 1 and 2 (identical) (Google 2018)
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This report is available at no cost from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) at www.nrel.gov/publications.

Figure A1.3. Bus 14D1936 Trace 1 (Google 2018)

Figure A1.4. Bus 14D1949 Trace 1 (Google 2018)
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This report is available at no cost from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) at www.nrel.gov/publications.

A.2 Excluded Portmore to Kingston

Figure A2.1. Bus 15D1988 Trace – Missing segments (Google 2018)

Figure A2.2. Bus 15D1991 Trace – 5-second data (Google 2018)
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This report is available at no cost from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) at www.nrel.gov/publications.

A.3 Spanish Town to Kingston

Figure A3.1. Bus 13P1888 Trace (Google 2018)

Figure A3.2. Bus 14D1905 Trace (Google 2018)

Figure A3.3. Bus 15D1994 Trace (Google 2018)
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This report is available at no cost from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) at www.nrel.gov/publications.

Figure A3.4. Bus 15D1995 Trace (Google 2018)

Figure A3.5. Bus 15D1998 Trace (Google 2018)
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This report is available at no cost from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) at www.nrel.gov/publications.

A.4 Spanish Town to Denbigh

Figure A4.1. Bus 16T0026 Traces 1 and 2 (Google 2018)

A.5 Beyond Kingston

Figure A5.1. Bus 15D1992 Trace (Google 2018)
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This report is available at no cost from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) at www.nrel.gov/publications.

Figure A5.2. Bus 16T0024 Trace (Google 2018)
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This report is available at no cost from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) at www.nrel.gov/publications.

References

Brooker, A., Gonder, J., Wang, L., Wood, E. et al. 2015. “FASTSim: A Model to Estimate 

Vehicle Efficiency, Cost, and Performance.” SAE Technical Paper 2015-01-0973, 2015, 

doi:10.4271/2015-01-0973. https://www.nrel.gov/transportation/fastsim.html

BYD Motors. 2018. Accessed July 13, 2018: www.byd.com/en/index.html.

National Renewable Energy Laboratory. 2013. “DRIVE Analysis Tool Generates Custom 

Vehicle Drive Cycles Based on Real-World Data.” NREL/FS-5400-54507.

National Renewable Energy Laboratory. 2018.“Fleet DNA Project Data.” National Renewable 

Energy Laboratory. Accessed January 15, 2018: www.nrel.gov/fleetdna

O’Keefe, M., A. Simpson, and K. Kelly. 2007. “Duty Cycle Characterization and Evaluation 

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Laboratory. NREL/CP-540-40929. Accessed July 24, 2018: 

https://www.nrel.gov/docs/gen/fy07/40929.pdf

Proterra. 2019. “Proterra Catalyst Buses.” Accessed April 17, 2019: www.proterra.com/.