Final School Bus News Roundup For 2022!

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One of the biggest problems in air pollution from motor vehicles is when they sit and idle. Anyone nearby, especially for diesel vehicles, gets to smell the nasty fumes, breathe the particulate matter, and more. Do we get anything back for that nastiness? Not really, because an idling engine uses a lot of fuel just to give you a little bit of heat or to not have a rough start. So, replacing diesel school buses, which idle around kids, is a high priority.

Given the relatively low speeds they usually go, combined with the stop-and-go driving, they’re really a great fit for going electric, too. Over the last few weeks, we’ve come across two news items that were kind of short on their own, but together show that electric school buses are making progress late in 2022!

GreenPower Appoints Peterson Truck & Bus as its School Bus Dealer for the State of Oregon

GreenPower’s BEAST Type D school bus and Nano BEAST Type A school bus

Our first story comes to us from Oregon. GreenPower Motor Company Inc. (NASDAQ: GP) (TSXV: GPV), a top-tier firm in the zero-emission, all electric vehicle manufacturing and distribution sphere, is proud to announce that Peterson Trucks, Inc. (“Peterson”) has been appointed as its dealer for both BEAST Type D and Nano BEAST Type A school buses throughout Oregon.

“Peterson brings 76 years of sales and service experience to this new relationship with GreenPower,” said Michael Perez, GreenPower’s Vice President of School Bus, Contracts and Grants. “With five locations across the state of Oregon, we look forward to working with them to build on the current footprint GreenPower already enjoys in the state. Oregon operates nearly 4,900 school buses and GreenPower has already been quoting bus sales for several school districts. Peterson will be a key partner in GreenPower’s development of this market.”

As part of their dealership agreement, Peterson has requested two Type D BEAST school buses to showcase and demonstrate the features that they offer to local schools and school districts.

“The Peterson team is excited about this new relationship with GreenPower and we plan to hit the ground running. The addition of GreenPower to our existing portfolio is a reflection of our commitment to this sector which we will continue to expand and support moving forward,” said Rich Sanner, Bus Sales Manager for Peterson. “The GreenPower BEAST and Nano BEAST are the preeminent purpose-built, all-electric, zero-emission Type A and D school buses on the market today and will quickly become the vehicle of choice as schools in Oregon migrate a higher percentage of their fleets to all-electric.”

GreenPower is already making a big impact in Oregon. Its EV Star models provide employee shuttles for one of the world’s leading sporting goods corporations and transportation solutions for non-profits in the area. Additionally, two award-winning Type A Nano BEAST buses are being produced specifically to serve Portland Public Schools — Oregon’s largest school district — and further BEAST buses are concluding their ordering process with other educational institutions nearby.

The Mobility House Partners With NYCSBUS To Deliver Clean, Electric School Buses In NYC

The Mobility House has been chosen by New York City School Bus Umbrella Services (NYCSBUS) as the manager of electric vehicle charging and V2G operations for the most extensive project on V2G school bus electrification in all of New York State.

Through The Mobility House’s ChargePilot® charge and energy management system, NYCSBUS was recently awarded the incredible sum of $8 million by New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA)’s New York Clean Transportation Prizes program. This money will be used to optimize infrastructure planning and operations for a fleet of 30 electric school buses at Zerega Avenue depot in the Bronx. According to The Mobility House’s estimations, smart charging could save NYCSBUS between $70-160K each year.

“We are excited to work with The Mobility House, thanks to generous funding from NYSERDA, to serve as the blueprint for how to rapidly scale school bus electrification in New York to meet the state’s ambitious goals.” said Matt Berlin, CEO of NYCSBUS. “The Mobility House is the most proven charge management provider in this space, and we appreciate their partnership in planning and implementing charging infrastructure to drive towards the electric future.”

The Mobility House and their partners are gathering data from this project to generate resources across New York that satisfy the state’s electric school bus mandate for 2035, as well as NYCSBUS’ determination of electrifying 850 buses by 2030. This also involves providing immediate assistance with transitioning two additional school districts towards electrification.

To bring this groundbreaking project to life, NYCSBUS has teamed up with renowned organizations such as World Resources Institute, CALSTART, Bronx Community College, New York League of Conservation Voters and South Bronx Unite. As for the timeline: The first 10 electric school buses are expected to arrive in 2023 while the following 20 will be delivered afterwards.

“It is an honor to partner with NYCSBUS and NYSERDA in accelerating the state’s transition to cleaner transportation. Our global charge management expertise with some of the world’s largest electric fleets will help set the standard for scalable, intelligent electric infrastructure across New York,” said The Mobility House U.S. Managing Director Gregor Hintler.

The Mobility House’s ChargePilot at the Zerega Avenue depot is responsible for managing all charging infrastructure, with 30 charge ports anticipated to be set up. This innovative technology adjusts electric school bus charging rates in accordance with real-time travel schedules and local utility costs, thus ensuring that districts pay a minimal cost while simultaneously enabling bidirectional charging operations which generate revenue for the district as well as strengthen energy sustainability in the area.

“The electrification of our transportation services is fundamental to improving health and climate conditions and offers a key opportunity to prioritize historically underserved communities who continue to suffer disproportionately the effects of air pollution,” said Sue Gander, Director of the Electric School Bus Initiative at WRI. “The vehicle-to-grid integration aspect of this project is particularly exciting, as it will demonstrate how electric school bus batteries can strengthen energy security and community resilience.”

Featured image provided by The Mobility House


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Jennifer Sensiba

Jennifer Sensiba is a long time efficient vehicle enthusiast, writer, and photographer. She grew up around a transmission shop, and has been experimenting with vehicle efficiency since she was 16 and drove a Pontiac Fiero. She likes to get off the beaten path in her "Bolt EAV" and any other EVs she can get behind the wheel or handlebars of with her wife and kids. You can find her on Twitter here, Facebook here, and YouTube here.

Jennifer Sensiba has 1931 posts and counting. See all posts by Jennifer Sensiba