Electric School Buses Can Drive Equity Across the Country
The bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) created once- in-a-generation funding to electrify school buses across the country. The legislation allows utility companies like Exelon to deliver a range of benefits to our customers and communities.
As a way to spread the word, Exelon released The Electric School Bus Transition white paper, which was coauthored in partnership with CALSTART, a non-profit organization that’s dedicated to advancing the clean transportation industry. The white paper includes contributions from the Edison Electric Institute, EPRI, the World Resource Institute and Clean Energy Works – all to provide a comprehensive overview of the benefits of school bus electrification. It is a free and public guide to support and accelerate the transition to electric school buses.
The white paper offers an outline for public utility commissions, policymakers, and school bus operators to be able to reduce common barriers to the adoption of electric school buses. By focusing on equity throughout each step of the process, the white paper shows the real, long-term and material impacts that electric school bus deployment can have.
Compared to traditional diesel school buses, electric school buses are a cleaner and more efficient alternative – offering benefits for students, drivers and communities. Below are eight ways electric school buses can create significant equity opportunities nationwide.
Eight Ways Electric School Buses Are Driving Equity in Energy
1. Zero Tailpipe Pollutants
Full school bus electrification can eliminate school bus tailpipe emissions and reduce air quality issues for low-income, minority, and disabled students more than for their counterparts. Diesel school buses produce harmful emissions like nitrogen dioxide (NO2), which have been connected to respiratory problems, asthma, cancer, and other diseases. Research shows that in urban areas across the U.S., low-income neighborhoods and communities of color face an average of nearly 30 percent more NO2 pollution than higher-income and majority-white neighborhoods. Electric school buses do not produce any exhaust emissions, which can offer an immediate benefit to children and communities.
2. Fight Against Greenhouse Gases
The adoption of electric school buses offers school districts around the country the opportunity to cut down on their carbon footprint and the greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to global warming. As underserved communities in urban areas suffer a more severe impact from greenhouse gases, this issue is as much an environmental justice benefit as a public health one.
3. Cut Down Bus Maintenance Costs
While the upfront cost of infrastructure upgrades and electric school buses can be higher than traditional diesel buses, the long-term savings are considerable. Maintenance costs are expected to be as much as 40 percent less than diesel engines, as electric buses have fewer moving parts and require less frequent maintenance. School districts can allocate more resources for educational purposes – allowing funding for areas like hiring teachers, improving facilities, and supporting educational programs.
4. Elevate Grid Resources
Electric school buses can be equipped with vehicle-to-everything (V2X) technology. These emerging technologies utilize electricity’s flexibility to store electricity and supply it back to the power grid during periods of high system demand. This can improve grid resilience during outages or in times of critical emergency situations.
5. Deliver Vehicle-to-Building Services
Electric school buses can provide backup generator power to buildings and offices during power outages, storms or disaster situations. By offering an outlet for resiliency, the unique characteristics of electric school buses can be a stable safety net for students, families and communities that often turn to schools as shelters and centers to help their communities.
6. Reduce Fuel Costs
Electric school bus fuel, in the form of electricity, costs 40 to 75 percent less per trip. Depending on the price of electricity and the availability of incentives, rebates, grants, and tax credits – the potential for reduced costs on school transportation could be considerable.
7. Improve Student Attendance and Academics
Recent studies have proven that electric school buses improve student attendance. Exposure to harmful pollutants can cause students to miss school or require medical treatment while at school. Acknowledging the correlation of attendance with academic success, the benefits of electric school buses are critical. Studies show that switching to electric buses can also improve academic achievement by reducing exposure to diesel pollution, which can negatively impact students’ cognitive and learning development capacities.
8. Create Educational Opportunities
School districts can use electric school buses as platforms for students to learn about clean energy, emerging technology, climate change and environmental science. By having buses be a feature of classroom learning and not just transportation, they can inspire the next generation of STEM students while promoting innovation and creativity.
As the white paper details, “School bus electrification provides an opportunity to create a system that significantly improves and transforms the quality of life for all people.”
By transforming how an estimated 25 million students get to and from school, we can work toward a more equitable and sustainable future for communities across the country.
To learn more about the Electric School Bus white paper, visit www.calstart.org/electric-school-bus-transition.