YOUR KEEP
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OUR RADIATORS LET YOU
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esides the fact that round two of the U.S. Environmental Pro- tection Agency Clean School Bus Program (CBSP) is now being administrated via a competitive grant, it also opens the door for contractors to apply directly for the funds, which many compa-
nies shared will help accelerate clean bus goals. Some contractors are setting end-goals when it comes to achieving a
zero-emission fleet of school buses. For instance, national contractor First Student, which recently announced its goal to convert 30,000 buses—over 70 percent of its North American fleet—to electric by 2035. The CSBP amendment will help the company achieve that goal. “We can
determine more strategically which school districts based on a variety of factors that we want to take forward through the EPA program in order to receive or have the ability to receive funding to begin implementation of electric buses in those areas,” explained Kevin Matthews, head of electrifica- tion for First Student. Matthews noted that being the largest contractor has its benefits when electrifying because the company has additional resources that other school bus operations may not have. These allow First Student to move forward at a more rapid pace yet efficiently. “We have a process that’s pretty standardized at this point in terms of
identifying grants and incentives that we can take advantage of for both busses and infrastructure,” he added. “From there, we do route analysis, look at utility issues, understand the climate conditions, understand the topography conditions in order to determine the best path forward to be successful in our deployments.” Currently, First Student has 244 electric buses deployed, with another
140 on order.
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On the other end of the contractor spectrum, Voigt’s School Bus Service
operating out of Minneapolis, Minnesota, has 83 vehicles in its fleet, 41 of which operate on propane. Chad Ely, operations manager for the compa- ny, said the fleet conversion to propane over the past few years has reaped great rewards for the community. Ely noted that Voigt plans on applying for the CSBP grant funds. Ely added that for smaller contractors, the process is all about what he termed the three R’s. “It really does start with relationships,” he said, add- ing that the company prides itself on the relationships with the districts served, the families transported, and the communities operated in and engaged with. “This creates a more open and cordial environment for these types of conversations about costs associated with any measure of large-scale conversion and cost-based deliverable. As you build the rela- tionships, you must execute on reliability, every day. An unreliable fleet performance is not a best-practice starting spot for an open and cordial dialogue about large-scale expense increases. “Therefore, incur the costs, get reliable, and be the best operator out
there, then when you are ready to talk numbers and needs with those you have built relationships [with], you are starting from a place of mutual trust and the conversation’s chances of success grows exponentially,” he continued. “With these two critical components in place, I am confident that more times than not, you will realize the return on your investments.” Meanwhile, Beacon Mobility, a network of transportation companies
that operates across 23 states, has about 5,000 school buses in its fleet plus an additional 2,000 vans that are used for student transportation. Bill
58 School Transportation News • JULY 2023
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