Beaverton School District in Oregon has four electric buses in service, with more on order. Craig Beaver, administrator for transportation, said the district is fortunate to take advantage of a fleet replacement funding program provided by the state.
equipment and build the skills that will be foundational to efficiently operating a larger fleet down the line,” she said. In the process, long-term thinking may be best. While
it might seem more cost-effective to go with less expen- sive slow chargers, for example, an investment in more expensive fast chargers might make sense, if the goal is to use buses as resiliency assets or in a vehicle-to-grid program at some point. Eventually, replacement of batteries will also have
a major budget impact. Currently, it costs $80,000 to $100,000 to replace a battery pack, reported Tim Zear- ley, associate superintendent of business services for Modesto City Schools in California, which has 30 ESBs. “They are covered under warranty for eight years, so if there’s a failure in the battery pack during the war- ranty period, the manufacturer will replace it.” However, he said he expects costs to be less chal- lenging in the future, with battery prices dropping as technology evolves. Utility rates, however, are another consideration. “For budgeting, make sure you understand the impli-
cations of your utility rates and any tariffs or time-of-use charging and that your project accounts for those,” Mickey said. “You might go electric to save money but end up spending more because you’re charging at a time of day when electricity prices are really high.”
Start-Up Steps The best advice in embracing electric vehicles might be
simply to proceed with caution. Such a move is already a requirement for some districts and may be seen as inevi-
40 School Transportation News • JUNE 2023
table elsewhere. But careful analysis will pay off. “Know your district and its individual needs inti-
mately,” Montgomery County’s Salois advised. “Speak with districts who have EVs and visit their facilities, and understand the challenges and benefits before making such a significant commitment.” He noted that if his fleet were 100-percent electric
today, it would not be possible to operate all daily schedules now in place. “This is due to runs that exceed the range of EVs, and mid-day work that keeps the bus on the road instead of going back to depot to charge for completion of evening schedules. Zearley, who speaks on the ESB experience at STN EXPO
Reno next month, stressed the importance of teamwork. “Be sure to include the bus drivers and mechanics ear-
ly in the process for training on new electric buses,” he said. “Be patient, and have a qualified infrastructure team in place to support the initial roll-out of electric buses and charge management issues that will arise.” One plus not to be overlooked is the prospect of targeted financial assistance. “Make sure you’re exploring all grants and incentives that are available at the federal, state, re- gional and local level, as well as what your utility might be able to assist you with in that area,” Matthews said. In maintaining electric buses, he added, be sure that
whomever you purchase them from will offer training to your mechanics and potentially to your drivers as well. “There are operational differences to be aware of, and your OEM and or dealer should assist you with providing those in the early stages as the buses are being delivered,” he concluded. ●
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