It’s called the V2B Oakland project, and it’s backed by $3.2 million in California Energy Commission funding, another $400,000 in matching funds from nonprofit West Oakland Environmental Indicators Project and regional transit operator AC Transit, and contributions from a long list of technology partners.

The goal is to prove out the technology and techniques to allow the thousands of electric buses coming onto U.S. roads in the coming years to be used in place of diesel generators for backup power when the grid fails, said Jason Hanlin, director of technology development at the Atlanta-based Center for Transportation and the Environment, which is taking a lead role on the project.

(…) Mobile generators are available, but ​“in a lot of cases, especially large emergencies, it’s very hard to get generators and engineers out there to hook them up” where they’re needed, he said. Battery-electric and hydrogen fuel-cell buses, by contrast, ​“can be deployed extremely quickly,” as long as buildings are equipped with bidirectional chargers and control systems that can move power from buses to buildings.

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