Schools in Michigan start adding electric school buses to its fleet of 70 diesel buses. The first ESB was pur- chased with an initial grant of $300,000 through the American Rescue Plan’s $7 million Electric School Bus Rebate program and about $100,000 from district funds. The grant is part of $1 billion in EPA funds, with districts receiving up to $375,000 per bus purchased plus $20,000 for charging infrastructure, explained David Mustonen, communications director. The district is now eligible for up to $7.1 million in additional funding to buy up to 18 more EVs. The EPA has classified Dearborn as a priority district as about 70 percent of the families in the district qualify as low income.
Budget Variables As with any new technology, start-up costs with ESBs can be challenging. “There are many variables to consider,” said Kevin
Matthews, head of electrification for First Student. He noted that the first year may include needs for additional maintenance equipment, new types of tools and safety equipment not required with diesel buses.
“That’s generally a one-time expense, but you need to
have that in order to be able to maintain and operate the buses,” he explained. “After that, in most instances you’re going to see a decrease in maintenance and operational costs because of the efficiencies of EVs.” A significant cost factor with electric school buses is the charging infrastructure. While fueling infrastructure already exists for diesel fleets, in most cases the under- lying infrastructure for electric fleets must still be built out, noted Alison Mickey, vice president of marketing for Highland Electric Fleets. But advance planning can help reduce costs over time. For example, for districts that plan to eventually electrify a full fleet but only want to start with a few electric buses, it can be more cost effective to install infrastructure that can accommodate the full fleet than to undertake multiple construction projects over time. Mickey added that the strategy of phasing in an electric fleet and starting with a smaller number of buses can be beneficial, not just in terms of spreading out costs but also in developing overall capabilities. “Starting with a small- er initial deployment can allow districts time to test the
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