Has your transportation operation started the process of creating a transportation microgrid?
45% No 35% What is that? 20% Yes
(Out of 20 responses to an STN reader survey, from those with electric vehicles in their fleet.)
Propane-Powered Electric School Buses
As Prince George’s County Public Schools in Maryland plans a microgrid for its new dedicated electric bus depot, the district is using portable electric charging trailers powered by propane to provide the juice for the first 10 electric school buses that are expected to go into service for the new school year. One of the trailers is equipped with one DC fast charge EVSE, and two more are to arrive soon with seven Level 2 EVSEs. Meanwhile, the school district recently
broke ground on its electric bus depot, which will feature solar canopies and up to 90 electric chargers. The school district is also looking to partner with the county transit system on electric bus infrastructure. Prince George’s County has about 1,200 school buses, of which 890 are in operation each day.
42 School Transportation News • JUNE 2024
“We’ve got seven different utilities we’re working with on those programs, so it’s certainly not anything that’s ready for massive scale yet,” he acknowledged. But the future is not far off. “We’re probably a year to a year- and-a-half away from real scale. A lot of the school districts are pushing for V2G programs, a lot of utilities are pushing for V2G programs,” Dhillon said. “The challenge is the avail- ability of school buses or the availability for a utility to have the interconnection set up to pull that power back.” He said he expects many utilities, faced with pressures to
modernize infrastructure and rising demand will encourage such interconnections with school districts. “They’re very interested in energy sources they can draw power without investing billions of dollars of infrastructure,” Dhillon said. Lion Electric is among the electric school bus manufac-
turers that are partnering with
Synop.ai. Patrick Gervais, vice president of truck and commercial development for Canada, said the relationship gives Lion Electric access to any Synop. ai data related to charging infrastructure. “There’s no better vehicle to start your experience of electri-
fication than school buses because of the mileage that they do. [Routes are] not that long. If they have any issues, then you’ll be able to charge at lunchtime before doing their afternoon route, so it’s a great product to be electrified,” Gervais ex- plained. “Right now, most of the vehicles are able to store the energy. We’re going to see more and more vehicles powering buildings in the coming months because it’s available now.” Lion Electric, which partnered with Con Edison and
National Express on a V2G study in White Plains, New York, continues to gather data from five electric buses operating on a daily basis. Results from a three-year period released in 2022 found there are challenges to overcome, such as ex- tended warranties and earlier battery replacements, but also the benefits of minimal electricity losses from the bus while reducing stress on the grid for local customers. “It’s not just school districts that are increasing demand for
electric buses. Utilities are pushing for more data and in- vestment. I think you’ll see in coming months that grids are going to be interested in school microgrids … as an alterna- tive power source,” Gervais said. “Some grids are maxed out. If there’s the need at a peak time and they don’t have enough energy, they have to purchase it at a very high cost. If the school district is able to store and discharge it, it’s a source that’s not too far away, the district can sell it to the grid at a higher price and it’s a win-win. Multiple benefits will be com- ing from this technology and your grids are going to be very interested in energy storage.” Bus batteries can be recycled or remain onsite as energy stor-
age cells for a district microgrid. Batteries are typically replaced not because they’ve failed but because they lack the necessary endurance. Using a running analogy, their marathon days may be over but they can still run sprints or even a half-marathon.
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