(TNS) – Acadia National Park’s bus fleet will soon be carbon-free.

With a grant from the federal government, Downeast Transportation Inc., which operates public transit in Acadia, will replace 21 of its propane-powered buses with 23 electric buses.

The $23.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation was announced Friday by Senator Angus King and Representative Chellie Pingree.

Paul Murphy, Downeast Transportation's general manager, said that while the electric buses will likely only be used for ground transportation in Acadia during the Island Explorer season from mid-June to early October, Downeast Transportation plans to use them on nearby routes year-round.

He expects to receive the electric buses in a few years.

“I estimate that … the buses will be delivered sometime between 2027 and 2028,” Murphy said. “We hope to have them online for the opening of the Island Explorer season in June 2028.”

The company's current propane buses “will be at the end of their useful life around the same time these buses arrive,” Murphy said. “What happens to them after that will depend on their condition. We'll talk to our partners at the state and the park service to see if we keep some of them for other services or if they'll be disposed of.”

The funding comes as Acadia is in the process of building a new visitor center where the Island Explorer bus will stop to pick up visitors on its way to other parts of the park. Acadia Superintendent Kevin Schneider said in a statement he looks forward to implementing the project over the next few years.

The grant was funded through USDOT's Rebuilding America's Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity Grants, funded by the bipartisan Infrastructure Act of 2021.

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