(CALEB BATES)
CAMPTON – On Monday, The Wolfe County Board of Education celebrated the delivery of Kentucky’s first electric school bus with a community gathering at Campton Elementary.
The delivery is part of an effort funded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) Clean School Bus Program. School districts were able to apply for funding and were then selected through a lottery.
In all, approximately 60 electric buses are on order for 10 Kentucky school districts this year. Each selected district will receive different buses depending on their infrastructure and needs.
Over the next five years, the program will provide $5 billion across the country to replace existing school buses with zero-emission and low-emission models.
Officials with the Kentucky Department of Education (KDE), Thomas Built Buses, Boyd Truck Centers and the Wolfe County Board of Education were on hand to celebrate the delivery of the first electric bus two days before the first day of school.
“This helps us create a greener county and a sustainable future for generations to come,” said Kenny Bell, superintendent of Wolfe County Schools. “More importantly, this allows us to model to our students that we not only talk about green energy, we not only talk about environmental sustainability, but we take action,” Bell said.
The cost for an electric school bus is about $400,000, compared to about $150,000 for a diesel bus, said Elisa Hanley, the pupil transportation branch manager at KDE.
According to the EPA, school buses travel more than four billion miles each year. The new electric buses will produce zero exhaust emissions or greenhouse gases, resulting in a cleaner environment for schoolchildren and their communities.
Maintenance costs also are expected to be reduced, thanks to their advanced technology, including less brake wear because of regenerative braking and no engine or exhaust maintenance.
