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Boulder orders 2nd all-electric RTX fire truck from Rosenbauer

January 21, 2024

The City of Boulder has purchased its second electric fire engine.

This acquisition, made possible by a State of Colorado grant, follows the city’s announcement in spring 2023 of its first electric engine purchase. Boulder is the first city to own two electric fire engines. Firefighters will be able to respond to calls with reduced exposure to carcinogenic fumes and noise.

The RTX’s pump system is fully electric, and the energy backup system, designed for flexibility and redundancy, can recharge the batteries and take over pumping operations during extended fire incidents.

It includes an adjustable suspension, allowing it to raise and lower its ride heights based on the terrain. This also facilitates easy entry and exit from the cab, reducing strain on firefighters and minimizing the reach height required to access equipment on the scene. The RTX also features standard all-wheel drive and an off-road mode for improved winter driving in Colorado’s extreme conditions.

“The City of Boulder is certainly known for approaching new opportunities that improve our community and our climate and these engines are a great example of that,” said Battalion Chief Travis Richen. “It is easy to lean-into a new technology when its priority is maintaining and improving the efficiency of our jobs and the safety of our crews.”

“Residents can rest assured that our crews will arrive and respond in this new rig with the resources and care that they usually do,” said Chief Richen. “The amazing thing about this engine is that it functions more effectively than our legacy engines because of the built-in option to power the engine in two ways: electric and diesel.”