Sitting at a bus stop and breathing toxic exhaust fumes may be a thing of the past once electric school buses roll out in some parts of the United States. But the pace is not moving as fast as it should because many decision makers fail to see the benefits for students, schools and the environment.
More than 24 million children ride the big yellow buses to school in the United States each year. We are unknowingly breathing in toxic carcinogens that are harmful to our health.
About 6 million children in the United States have asthma, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Furthermore, the lungs are not fully developed until he finishes school when he is 20, when he is about 25.
Exhaust from diesel school buses emits “more than 40 toxic air-encapsulated, carcinogenic substances” along with other toxic compounds and particulate matter.
To make matters worse, the school bus stops constantly while smoke seeps into the vehicle. A previous study from Yale University found that particle levels inside baths are five to ten times higher than outside.
New school buses are designed to meet the latest EPA standards, but there are still some issues. For one thing, newer school buses are more likely to be seen in high school districts, and low-income communities will be affected by toxic gas emissions.
Electric school bus to the rescue
As of June 2022, school districts across the United States have committed to deploying 12,275 EV school buses in 38 states.
Electric school buses have zero tailpipe emissions, are safer for children, and offer schools benefits that petrol-powered buses could only dream of.
Why electric school buses are the future of America
School districts with electric school buses are providing a cleaner, healthier environment for students and communities. But what you might not know is that EV buses have also been proven to save schools money and strengthen the energy grid.
Electric vehicles generally require less maintenance and do not need to use diesel gas (which is already more expensive than regular gas).
California’s Modesto Unified School District ordered 30 Bluebird electric school buses in March and expects to save more than $250,000 annually in fuel alone.
However, one of the most important benefits is still under investigation. Last week, Highland Electric Fleet announced a partnership to send energy back to the grid using Vehicle-to-Grid technology (V2G).
Highland partnered with Thomas Built Buses, Proterra and others to send a total of 10 MWh of energy back into the grid this summer. That may not seem like much, but 10 MWh is enough to power about 600 homes.
This technology can be of great benefit to school districts as a backup energy supply. Or, in some cases, it may be possible to sell energy back to the grid during peaks or superpeaks.
Most importantly, there is no reason school districts should not switch to new incentives and rebates for purchasing electric school buses.
The U.S. Relief Plans Act of 2021 provides a total of $7 million to eligible U.S. schools, with a $300,000 rebate for each EV bus. And the new Clean School Bus Program (part of the 2021 Infrastructure Bill) will pay up to $500 million to replace diesel buses with zero-emission alternative or electric school buses.
Electrek take
At the moment, switching to electric school buses seems to be the only option. With new incentives and rebates, why isn’t my school district transitioning?
EV buses are better for students and communities, and can also save districts money in the long run. The majority of states have adopted some form of electric school bus, but the decision is often left to school district and state leaders.
For the transition to happen, state governments must also strengthen and support this movement. For example, the state of California is giving her $1.5 billion this year to encourage widespread adoption of electric school buses.
Electric school buses are the future, but everyone needs a ride to get there.
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