Editing Fuel Cell Bus Club (section)

===STEP===
STEP sood for Sustainable Transport Energy for Perth.<ref>Towards Tomorrow ''[[Sun-Herald]]'' 9 November 2003</ref> This initiative of the [[Government of Western Australia]]'s [[Department for Planning and Infrastructure]], was the responsibility of [[Transperth]], though it was run by contracted operator [[Path Transit]]. The three [[Mercedes-Benz]] hydrogen fuel cell buses that operated in [[Perth]] were called "EcoBuses".<ref>Hydrogen buses arrive in Perth ''[[Australasian Bus and Coach]]'' September 2004 page 13</ref> The STEP project ran from 2001 to 2005, with the first buses in service in September 2004.<ref name=behling/> The buses were withdrawn from service in 2007,<ref>{{Cite web |date=20 August 2007 |title=Hydrogen fuel cell bus trial draws to a close |url=https://www.pta.wa.gov.au/news/media-statements/hydrogen-fuel-cell-bus-trial-draws-to-a-close |access-date=2023-01-10 |website=[[Public Transport Authority (Western Australia)|Public Transport Transport Authority]]|language=en-US}}</ref> with one bus subsequently preserved (albeit without the hydrogen fuel cells).<ref>{{Cite web |last=Crosbie |first=Malcolm |date=19 June 2011 |title=Hydrogen fuel Cell Buses |url=https://www.bpswa.org/hydrogen-fuel-cell-buses.html |access-date=2023-01-10 |website=[[Bus Preservation Society of Western Australia]] |language=en}}</ref>

The Perth trial received [[Australian dollar|A$]]2.5 million funding from the [[Department of the Environment and Heritage]] and the [[Australian Greenhouse Office]].<ref name=behling/> It was endorsed by the [[United Nations Environment Programme]] and the [[United Nations Industrial Development Organization]].<ref name=behling/>

[[BP]] produced the hydrogen as a by-product at its [[Kwinana Oil Refinery]] ({{Convert|50|km|mi|1}} south of Perth).<ref name=behling/> The hydrogen was then transported by road in specially designed road tankers to a bus depot in the northern suburbs of Perth.<ref name=behling/> Perth's buses achieved greater reliability and better [[fuel efficiency|fuel economy]] than in any other city in the trial.<ref name=behling/>

By June 2005, the Perth buses had covered more than {{Convert|60000|km|mi|0}} and completed almost 3,000 operational hours, with almost 60,000 passengers having used the service.<ref name=behling/>

* In 2004, STEP received a [[Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport]] Outstanding Achievement award.
* In 2005, it was presented with a Banksia award in the "Government Leading by Example for a Sustainable Future" category.