qualifies for electric vehicle grants awarded by lottery. “The future costs of diesel engines will be looked at as a normal cost of business until a better alternative is found,” he said, recalling that Warsaw was able to weath- er the 2007 and 2014 emission changes by changing service tactics and driver training. “Our state came to the table and increased our funding for the first round, but that seems to have been a one-and-done deal,” he added. The outlook is similar at California’s Clovis Unified School District, noted Vehicle Maintenance Manager Aaron (AJ) Jones. Diesel buses powered by renewable fuel, still allowed by CARB under the Low Carbon Fuel Standard, continue to better serve his fleet’s needs than electric buses, he said, even with the understanding that the new emission standards will incur additional costs. “We cover 200 square miles a day just in regular routes, not to mention sports and extra trips from sites,” he said. “We’d prefer to absorb costs related to new emission stan- dards than deal with the ramifications of going electric.”
The inevitability of cost increases is a basic fact that can be dealt with, explained John Fergerson, director of transportation at Klein Independent School District in Spring, Texas. “With this change or any change, the biggest challenge
for school districts is always money,” he said. “We are certainly keeping a close eye on things because we know that vendors will be forced to put this cost on the districts.” Like Warsaw and many others, his district doesn’t
qualify for the maximum amount of grant funds for electric vehicles. “After weighing the cost, it makes more sense for our district to continue purchasing diesel bus- es,” Fergerson explained. “We are also sitting back and observing the successes or lack of successes from our surrounding districts before sinking a lot of money into electric buses.” From the manufacturing viewpoint, companies at the heart of this evolution are taking a multi-faceted approach as they adjust not just to changing envi-
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