Electric School Bus Driver Will Not Go Back To Diesel

Sometimes facts and data are not well understood and there is a personal preference for first-person stories based on personal experiences. While anecdotes do not qualify as scientific evidence, many of us humans may not have much appreciation for the scientific method because we did not study it thoroughly or receive training in it, so we go with stories, feelings, opinions, and something vaguely called “intuition” — or we might lean on a belief in a religious avatar we believe is watching over us and taking care of our lives.

Personal stories appear to do well online perhaps because they are simple and easy to understand — sort of like sporting events which have rather obvious outcomes.

Recently, a school bus driver in Salt Lake City wrote a letter about switching to an electric school bus and touched upon a number of benefits. “Another major benefit is the clean, exhaust-free ride. Electric buses don’t produce tailpipe emissions, which makes the environment inside the bus much more pleasant.  With air quality being an ongoing concern in Salt Lake City, especially during the winter months, it feels good to be part of a solution.”

Salt Lake City is known to have an air pollution problem, as noted by the American Lung Association. “Both ozone and particle pollution can cause premature death and other serious health effects such as asthma attacks, heart attacks and strokes, preterm births and impaired cognitive functioning later in life. Particle pollution can also cause lung cancer.

“Infants, children and teens as a group are more susceptible to the health impacts of air pollution. Their lungs are still developing; they breathe more air for their body size than adults and they are frequently exposed to outdoor air. Air pollution exposure in childhood can cause long-term harm, including reduced lung growth, new asthma cases and increased risk of respiratory diseases.”

The electric bus driver didn’t really go far enough because diesel exhaust is linked to specific health problems in humans and there are many more details involved. There are also tremendous costs. Air pollution is one cause of asthma in people, and the cost of asthma in the US is huge. “Reports indicate that the annual economic costs of asthma treatment are around $82 billion and medical costs make up almost $50.3 billion. Estimates show that patients with asthma pay $3266 higher costs per year compared with medical costs for people without asthma. Costs from missed work and school days make up $3 billion in losses. Researchers estimate that the cost of uncontrolled asthma will be nearly $964 billion from 2019 to 2038.”

Yes, the electric bus is probably more pleasant because there aren’t any diesel fumes or exhaust, and yet the pleasantness is the least important fact of the matter. Electric buses are much healthier because they don’t generate all the harmful emissions diesel buses do.

Electric motors also don’t waste as much energy as diesel motors do, and in some cases, electricity costs less than diesel fuel. Further, maintenance and repairs of electric buses can also cost less. The battery packs in electric buses might also be used collectively to form a virtual power plant to support a local grid.

Furthermore, electric buses can be run on electricity made by clean, renewable electricity such as solar power, wind power, hydropower, and geothermal. Diesel buses can only be run on dirty fossil fuels that generate greenhouse gases and toxic air pollution. Fossil fuels are also routinely spilled on land and are involved in disastrous oil spills in marine habitats.

Some people try to claim electric buses “cost too much,” but they seem to be unaware of all the costs diesel buses have in terms of toxic air pollution that harms humans, greenhouse gas emissions, much wasted fuel, potentially greater repair and maintenance costs, leaking underground storage tanks, the cost of not solving urgent climate and air quality problems, and the link fossil fuels have to corrupt politicians. Factoring in all such costs, electric buses do not cost too much.

Now, having written all that, the bus driver deserves credit for writing the piece and for all the years of service they’ve provided, so the last word will go to the driver: “I’m grateful that the Salt Lake City School District has taken a leadership role in bringing electric school buses to our community. Driving electric has made my job more enjoyable and comfortable, and it’s rewarding to know I’m helping create a better experience for the students I serve.”