State of Electric School Buses — 2024 Edition

By
Admin
-
0
5


Sign up for daily news updates from CleanTechnica on email. Or follow us on Google News!

Data shows leaders and laggards for total electric school buses and combined investments driving electric school bus conversion.

Introduction

Each year, more than 490,000 school buses shuttle children back and forth across the United States –to school, field trips, sporting events and more. As most of these buses burn diesel fuel, children and drivers are exposed to harmful pollutants that are linked to asthma, other health issues and cognitive development problems.

Conversely, electric school buses have zero tailpipe emissions, and therefore offer a cleaner, healthier alternative to diesel buses. This report finds the number of these zero-emission vehicles are growing in school districts around the country, thanks in part to big investments from Congress and states to transition to electric school buses.

Federal Funding

As part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Congress authorized up to $5 billion to help school districts transition to electric school buses via the Clean School Bus Program (CSBP). The program provides grant and rebate funding opportunities to school districts, nonprofit school transportation associations and tribal organizations to replace older, diesel buses with newer, electric or low-emission models.

The first round of funding applications under the new program solicited applications from May through August 2022, and the EPA received approximately 2,000 applications requesting nearly $4 billion for 12,000 buses. Due to the high demand, the agency nearly doubled its initial $500 million rebate pool. The awards for that round of funding are shown below.

2022 Clean School Bus Rebate Program Awards

Source: EPA Clean School Bus Program Rebate Awards as of 8/15/24

In 2023, the EPA opened a second funding opportunity through the 2023 Clean School Bus Grant Program, which provided grants rather than the previous rebate. Winners were selected based on their applications and prioritizing high need and rural school districts.

2023 Clean School Bus Grant Program Awards

Source: EPA Clean School Bus Program Grant Awards as of 8/15/24

In September 2023 a third round of funding opened in the form of a rebate. On May 29th, the EPA announced awards for the 2023 rebates, shown in the table below.

2023 Clean School Bus Rebate Program Awards

Source: EPA Clean School Bus Program Rebate Awards as of 8/15/24

The Clean Heavy Duty Vehicles Grant Program

The Inflation Reduction Act sets aside $1 billion to fund the transition to zero-emission heavy duty vehicles including zero-emission Class 6 or Class 7 school buses via the Clean Heavy Duty Vehicles (CHDV) Grant Program. This program was open to other heavy duty electric vehicles in addition to Class 6 and 7 school buses, including dump trucks, transit buses, delivery trucks and others. Applications for grants opened in April 2024, and the application period closed in July 2024. Information about awards for the CHDV program will be posted on the EPA Clean Heavy Duty Vehicle Program website.

The EPA plans to notify grantees in November 2024 and award the grants in February 2025.

State Funding

In addition to the EPA’s monumental investment in the transition to electric school buses, states from across the country have adopted legislation of their own to support school districts in replacing older diesel buses with cleaner electric ones.

Below is a list of the top 10 states based on the total state and federal funding dedicated to electric school buses as of May 29, 2024.*

*Data from Atlas Public Policy, accurate through May 29, 2024. Does not include dollars from the 2023 Clean School Bus Grant Program that were categorized as a mix of fuel types.

A complete list of states ranked by public funding for electric school buses can be found in Appendix A.

Number of electric school buses by state

Using data from the World Resources Institute’s Electric School Bus Dashboard, the following table shows the status of total committed electric school buses (ESBs), awarded ESBs, ordered ESBs, delivered or operating ESBs, and the number of students riding ESBs for each state. The World Resources Institute considered electric school buses “committed” while in any of the four stages of adoption: awarded, ordered, delivered or operating — so long as “a school district or fleet operator has been awarded funding to purchase it or makes a formal agreement to purchase to purchase it from a manufacturer — not when they have only expressed intent to acquire one.”

At the time the data was collected in May 2024, 48 states had electric school buses delivered or in operation, with the exceptions of Wyoming and Idaho.

As of August 1, 2024, the top states for committed electric school buses are listed below:

Top 10 states for committed electric school buses as of 8/1/2024

Source: Electric School Bus Data Dashboard, State ESB Adoption tab, World Resources Institute, data accessed 8/1/24

States with the fewest committed electric school buses included Delaware, Alaska and Wyoming. For a complete ranking of committed electric school buses by state, see Appendix B.

Recommendations

For school districts
  • Set a goal to end the purchase of new fossil fuel buses and transition to a 100% zero-emission fleet. This can send an important market signal and help bring the school community together behind a single goal.
  • Have an account on www.SAM.gov, which is a precursor to applying for federal funds. It is free to set up an account and three additional rounds of funding will be available through 2026.
  • Explore all possible financing options:
  • Start a conversation with your utility company as early as possible to see what resources they can provide. Many utilities offer consulting services to assess wiring and charging needs or rebates to reduce the costs of the wiring upgrades and infrastructure installation. In addition, work with your utility to ensure a competitive charging price system is in place.
For lawmakers
  • Dedicate dollars to zero-emission, electric school buses
  • Identify and remove barriers to incentivize utility companies to develop effective and consistent rates for electric school bus charging, particularly around peak demand rates.
  • Support research and development in electric school bus technology, including vehicle-to-grid and vehicle-to-building technology.
For utilities
  • Continue to increase renewable energy capacity on the grid, making electric buses even cleaner.
  • Develop turnkey programs to assist school districts in assessing their charging needs and providing incentives for charging infrastructure.
  • Financially support research and development in electric school bus technology, including vehicle-to-grid and vehicle-to-building technology.
  • Establish bulk purchase savings programs to lower costs for school districts.
  • Create pricing structures that incentivize school districts to use vehicle-to-building and/or vehicle-to-grid opportunities from school buses
For parents and students
  • Call on your school board to convert to electric school buses by passing a resolution to transition the fleet to 100% electric buses and only purchase electric school buses moving forward.
  • Share information about electric school buses at PTA meetings and other educational forums to increase understanding of the benefits for students and school districts. Organize an event where students, parents and the community can experience riding an electric school bus.
  • Recruit volunteers to help with grant writing for smaller school districts to compete for this money.
Resources

Appendix A

Federal and State Funding for Electric School Buses (5/29/24) – data from Atlas Public Policy
Rank State Total Funding
1 California $684,092,571
2 New York $237,705,929
3 Illinois $223,820,312
4 Texas $184,792,970
5 Michigan $167,740,803
6 Florida $160,042,734
7 Georgia $159,529,307
8 Louisiana $144,141,664
9 Pennsylvania $143,859,350
10 Massachusetts $138,167,785
11 Wisconsin $127,931,889
12 North Carolina $106,486,639
13 Ohio $104,654,779
14 Virginia $96,688,873
15 Minnesota $93,502,994
16 Missouri $93,358,781
17 Mississippi $91,613,989
18 Oklahoma $79,774,605
19 Colorado $76,139,322
20 Arizona $75,376,503
21 South Carolina $73,935,000
22 Connecticut $73,264,508
23 Washington $69,208,805
24 Oregon $63,962,000
25 New Jersey $60,074,725
26 Indiana $59,783,065
27 Tennessee $57,629,250
28 Kansas $41,570,000
29 Kentucky $40,013,020
30 Arkansas $38,605,000
31 New Hampshire $34,865,000
32 Maryland $33,986,421
33 Montana $27,690,382
34 Nebraska $26,735,000
35 Alabama $25,242,558
36 Rhode Island $23,470,000
37 West Virginia $22,345,000
38 Maine $20,550,000
39 Iowa $20,500,000
40 North Dakota $19,442,375
41 Utah $19,155,660
42 Nevada $17,579,604
43 District of Columbia (D.C.) $14,450,000
44 Vermont $11,972,791
45 New Mexico $11,521,687
46 Idaho $8,295,000
47 Hawaii $4,844,660
48 South Dakota $3,127,857
49 Delaware $965,681
50 Alaska $802,465
51 Wyoming $0

Appendix B

Committed Electric School Buses Ranked by State as of 8/1/24 

Rank State Committed ESBs Awarded ESBs Ordered ESBs Delivered or operating ESBs Students riding ESBs
1 California 3,107 726 1204 1,177 63,675
2 New York 764 566 80 118 4,853
3 Illinois 609 425 52 132 4,938
4 Florida 467 229 72 166 7,715
5 Pennsylvania 460 360 63 37 1,736
6 Maryland 439 53 50 336 30,254
7 Massachusetts 434 288 84 62 3,444
8 Texas 424 359 35 30 561
9 Virginia 385 83 66 236 16,174
10 Georgia 341 222 31 88 3,716
11 Michigan 315 188 67 60 2,153
12 New Jersey 306 167 2 137 5,553
13 Louisiana 283 259 4 20 1,359
14 North Carolina 263 178 14 71 4,002
15 Oregon 246 189 14 43 2,048
16 Missouri 229 159 14 56 2,227
17 Washington 222 128 15 79 2,498
18 Connecticut 211 166 0 45 2,444
19 South Carolina 195 181 0 14 832
20 Arizona 186 161 7 18 756
21 Mississippi 165 107 0 58 2,610
22 Ohio 165 150 9 6 285
23 Colorado 144 70 28 46 2,070
24 Wisconsin 141 117 4 20 745
25 Oklahoma 138 62 11 65 2,925
26 New Hampshire 117 113 0 4 200
27 Indiana 104 65 4 35 1,352
28 Kentucky 104 47 6 51 2,219
29 Minnesota 101 88 4 9 325
30 West Virginia 99 52 37 10 470
31 Tennessee 86 41 26 19 1,059
32 Montana 81 64 1 16 334
33 Rhode Island 79 45 24 10 561
34 Arkansas 78 72 2 4 196
35 Maine 78 36 20 22 1,133
36 Alabama 70 48 14 8 331
37 Kansas 64 50 0 14 638
38 Iowa 60 41 1 18 671
39 Nevada 57 25 10 22 1,094
40 Vermont 39 21 1 17 847
41 Utah 36 14 0 22 1,270
42 New Mexico 34 23 5 6 464
43 Hawaii 23 20 0 3 149
44 Idaho 23 10 13 0 0
45 Nebraska 23 19 0 4 33
46 North Dakota 18 11 0 7 130
47 South Dakota 8 2 0 6 132
48 Delaware 5 3 1 1 82
49 Alaska 2 0 1 1 82
50 Wyoming 0 0 0 0 0

Source: Electric School Bus Data Dashboard, State ESB Adoption tab, World Resources Institute, data accessed 8/1/24

Appendix C

Committed electric school buses by state alphabetical as of 8/1/2024

State Committed ESBs Awarded ESBs Ordered ESBs Delivered or operating ESBs Students riding ESBs
Alabama 70 48 14 8 331
Alaska 2 0 1 1 82
Arizona 186 161 7 18 756
Arkansas 78 72 2 4 196
California 3,107 726 1204 1,177 63,675
Colorado 144 70 28 46 2,070
Connecticut 211 166 0 45 2,444
Delaware 5 3 1 1 82
Florida 467 229 72 166 7,715
Georgia 341 222 31 88 3,716
Hawaii 23 20 0 3 149
Idaho 23 10 13 0 0
Illinois 609 425 52 132 4,938
Indiana 104 65 4 35 1,352
Iowa 60 41 1 18 671
Kansas 64 50 0 14 638
Kentucky 104 47 6 51 2,219
Louisiana 283 259 4 20 1,359
Maine 78 36 20 22 1,133
Maryland 439 53 50 336 30,254
Massachusetts 434 288 84 62 3,444
Michigan 315 188 67 60 2,153
Minnesota 101 88 4 9 325
Mississippi 165 107 0 58 2,610
Missouri 229 159 14 56 2,227
Montana 81 64 1 16 334
Nebraska 23 19 0 4 33
Nevada 57 25 10 22 1,094
New Hampshire 117 113 0 4 200
New Jersey 306 167 2 137 5,553
New Mexico 34 23 5 6 464
New York 764 566 80 118 4,853
North Carolina 263 178 14 71 4,002
North Dakota 18 11 0 7 130
Ohio 165 150 9 6 285
Oklahoma 138 62 11 65 2,925
Oregon 246 189 14 43 2,048
Pennsylvania 460 360 63 37 1,736
Rhode Island 79 45 24 10 561
South Carolina 195 181 0 14 832
South Dakota 8 2 0 6 132
Tennessee 86 41 26 19 1,059
Texas 424 359 35 30 561
Utah 36 14 0 22 1,270
Vermont 39 21 1 17 847
Virginia 385 83 66 236 16,174
Washington 222 128 15 79 2,498
West Virginia 99 52 37 10 470
Wisconsin 141 117 4 20 745
Wyoming 0 0 0 0 0

Source: Electric School Bus Data Dashboard, State ESB Adoption tab, World Resources Institute, data accessed 8/1/24

By Danny Katz, Executive Director, CoPIRG Foundation, U.S. PRIG Education Fund

Have a tip for CleanTechnica? Want to advertise? Want to suggest a guest for our CleanTech Talk podcast? Contact us here.

Latest CleanTechnica.TV Videos

Advertisement



 

CleanTechnica uses affiliate links. See our policy here.

CleanTechnica’s Comment Policy