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Volkswagen fines to pay most of new bus costs

Shoreline Metro’s capital plan calls for the addition of a new bus, funded mostly by the Volkswagen emissions scandal settlement.

According to the Sheboygan Metropolitan Planning Area Transportation Improvement Program, the 35-foot fixed-route bus is expected to be purchased in 2020.

“The new bus will provide a better transportation experience for passengers as well as reduce operating budget maintenance and repair costs,” program documents state.

Shoreline Metro staff noted that delivery of the busses typically takes about a year. Cost of the bus is expected to be $475,000.

Eighty-percent of the expenses are covered by the Volkswagen Diesel Emissions Environmental Mitigation Trust. The trust was established after a 2015 scandal when the Environmental Protection Agency found Volkswagen tampered with emissions testing.

The remaining 20 percent will come from state shared revenue received by Sheboygan.

Jeff Agee-Aguayo, transportation planner at the Bay-Lake Regional Planning Commission, said additional funding from the trust will be pursued in the future.

According to Bay-Lake Regional Planning Commission data, Shoreline Metro in Sheboygan, Sheboygan Falls and Kohler operates 33 total busses. Of those busses, 15 are considered beyond their useful age. Nine have passed the useful mileage benchmark.

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