Here’s how the largest electric school bus transition in the US is going so far

Those big yellow diesel school buses are a thing of the past as the US moves to zero-emission transportation. For those wondering how students and drivers are reacting to the transition, the Montgomery County Public School, which currently operates the largest electric school bus fleet in the US, gives us an inside look at how it’s going so far.
Expand Expanding CloseFree electric school buses? Stackable incentives nearly make it a reality

The days of kids sitting at the bus stop breathing toxic fumes may soon come to an end with new incentives that make electric school buses nearly free for school districts to obtain.
Expand Expanding CloseThe first US-made LionC zero-emission electric school bus rolls off the factory line in Illinois

As electric school buses gain momentum across the US, Lion Electric announced Wednesday it produced its first “made in America” LionC zero-emission EV school bus at its Joliet, Illinois factory.
Expand Expanding CloseThe nation’s largest electric school bus fleet providing grid demand response solutions

Maryland’s Montgomery School District has the most prominent electric school bus fleet in the US and is now unlocking the true potential behind these clean EV machines. Leading electric school bus provider Highland Electric Fleets is partnering with CPower to use the nation’s largest zero-emission bus fleet to help stabilize electricity demand, provide grid reliability, and lower energy costs.
Expand Expanding CloseThis solar + microgrid storage depot can charge 70 electric buses

Montgomery County, Maryland, is on a roll. Earlier this month, it deployed the single largest electric school bus fleet – 86 – in the US. Now 70 of the county’s electric buses will be powered at a solar-powered, microgrid energy storage depot in Brookville.
Expand Expanding CloseThe EPA just awarded $1 billion to 389 school districts for electric school buses

The Biden Administration today announced the recipients of nearly $1 billion of the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) 2022 Clean School Bus Program rebate competition. In other words, that means thousands of new electric school buses will soon hit the road across the US.
Expand Expanding CloseThe largest electric school bus fleet in the US just launched in Maryland

Montgomery County Public Schools, one of the largest school districts in the US, has deployed the single largest electric school bus fleet in the country.
Expand Expanding CloseSchool districts embrace electric buses as the 200th Proterra-powered EV bus arrives in Indiana

Electric school buses are rolling out across the United States as school districts look to keep their students and the communities they work in safe and free of harmful emissions. In a significant milestone, Thomas Built Buses announced Wednesday that it has delivered 200 Proterra-powered electric school buses, with the latest going to Monroe County, Indiana.
Expand Expanding CloseBIDIRECTIONAL Act introduced in US Senate to promote electric school buses feeding grid

A new bill introduced Friday by US Senator Angus King of Maine could unlock the true potential of electric school buses and provide stability to communities in need. The BIDIRECTIONAL Act would “create a program dedicated to deploying electric school buses with bidirectional vehicle-to-grid (V2G) flow capability.”
Expand Expanding CloseEPA doubles electric school bus funding to almost $1B after overwhelming initial demand

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced Thursday that the agency will almost double its funding for electric school buses to close to $1 billion after school districts from all 50 states applied for rebates.
Expand Expanding CloseThe second largest electric school bus fleet in the US just crossed 500,000 service miles

The school year is beginning, so the buses will be out in full force. However, you may notice a significant difference this year as emission-free electric school buses roll out across the United States. One of the nation’s leading school bus manufacturers, Thomas Built Buses, just achieved a major milestone with help from its Virginia-based dealer Sonny Merryman — Saf-T-Liner C2 Jouley electric school buses have now driven more than 500,000 miles.
Expand Expanding CloseElectric school buses are a no-brainer, yet decision-makers somehow still need educating

Sitting at the bus stop, breathing toxic exhaust fumes may be a thing of the past as soon as electric school buses roll out in several districts around the US. But the pace is not moving as quickly as it should be as many decision-makers are failing to grasp the benefits for students, the school, and the environment.
Expand Expanding CloseElectric school buses give back over 80 hours of power to Massachusetts energy grid

The power of heavy-duty electric vehicles is on display again in Massachusetts as electric school buses are being used to send much-needed energy back to the grid.
Expand Expanding CloseHere’s where US electric school bus adoption currently stands

As of this month, US school districts and fleet operators have committed to 12,275 electric school buses in 38 states, according to a new report from the Washington, DC-based nonprofit World Resources Institute (WRI). That’s about the size of the entire school bus fleet of North Carolina.
Expand Expanding CloseColorado commits $65 million to electric school buses

Colorado Governor Jared Polis has signed into law SB 193, an air-quality bill which among other things creates a $65 million grant program for electric school buses in the state.
Expand Expanding CloseBiden administration kicks off $5 billion electric Clean School Bus program

US Vice President Kamala Harris and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Michael Regan are today launching the Clean School Bus program, a part of President Joe Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, from a high school in Falls Church, Virginia.
Expand Expanding CloseBoston will move to 100% electric school buses by 2030

Boston mayor Michelle Wu last week announced that Boston Public Schools will deploy 20 electric buses during the 2022-23 school year in a pilot program. Ultimately, Boston will electrify its entire school bus fleet by 2030.
Expand Expanding CloseNew York State commits to 100% electric school buses by 2035 [Update]

In January, Governor Kathy Hochul (D-NY) said she would propose legislation to shift to 100% electric school buses by 2035. She also said she would propose legislation to require that all new school bus purchases will be zero-emissions by 2027. That legislation is now about to become law.
Expand Expanding CloseNevada pledges to electrify all new trucks and buses by 2050

The governor of Nevada, Steve Sisolak (D-NV), signed a multi-state agreement yesterday that pledges at least 30% of all new trucks and buses sold will be zero emission by 2030, and 100% will be zero emission by 2050.
Expand Expanding CloseUS school bus maker Blue Bird receives its largest-ever order of electric school buses

Macon, Georgia-based bus maker Blue Bird Corporation (Nasdaq: BLBD) has received the single largest order of electric school buses from a school district in its history.
Expand Expanding CloseElectric school buses are reaching cost parity with diesel, and a California district will deploy one of the largest e-bus fleets in the state

Lots of news in the segment of electric school buses this week, as Highland Electric Fleets signed an agreement with Thomas Built Buses to provide lower upfront costs to customers and expedite EV adoption; their letter of intent will put the price of an electric bus at cost parity with the traditional diesel option. On the opposite US coast, InCharge Energy and its partners announced a project in Southern California to deploy 42 electric school buses, calling it the largest fleet in the state.
Expand Expanding CloseLion Electric launches LionCapital Solutions bank to help bus and truck fleets maintain financial structures in electric transition

The Lion Electric Company has launched a new division called LionCapital Solutions. The new division will provide Lion Electric customers with flexible financing as they look to electrify their fleets of medium- to heavy-duty commercial vehicles such as school buses and trucks.
Electrification of school busses and fleets requires a huge upfront cost but lower total cost of ownership over the life of the vehicle. By helping spread out the purchase price of fleets over their lifetimes, Lion is allowing operators to keep in place their current financial structures.
Expand Expanding CloseBYD introduces a unique looking electric school bus for the US with vehicle-to-grid capabilities

Chinese mobility manufacturer BYD has introduced its new “Type A” electric school bus to transport up to thirty US students at a time. Furthermore, the new zero-emission bus is ADA capable up to 800 lbs and can travel 140 miles on a single charge. What may be most appealing to school districts, however, is the vehicle-to-grid (V2G) capabilities BYD’s Type A school bus will provide.
Expand Expanding Close10,000 North American school buses will be converted to fully electric

SEA Electric, an Australian company with US headquarters in Torrance, California, that makes battery electric power systems for commercial vehicles, and Illinois-headquartered Midwest Transit Equipment (MTE), one of the largest school bus dealers in the US, have partnered to update 10,000 school buses in the US Midwest with battery-electric power systems over the next five years.
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