Electric school buses have arrived in Wisconsin.
The Palmyra-Eagle Area School District, southwest of Waukesha, showed off a couple of its new buses this week. Federal taxpayers are helping pay for what may become a major transition in the way many kids get to and from school.
You may be very familiar with the loud sound of a typical diesel-powered school bus. But with a rechargeable battery-powered bus cruising down State Hwy. 59 west of Eagle, at about 55 mph, you really only hear the tires rolling on bumpy pavement and little vibrations within the bus.
Driver Jessica Chelminiak praises the relative quiet, and makes comparisons to a famous PBS children's series: "Like, who would have thought we could run something like this down the road on electricity versus diesel. So, we''ll call it our own version of The Magic School Bus," she says, laughing.
Chelminiak works for Dousman Transport, which drives buses for the Palmyra-Eagle Area School District. Thanks to more than two-million dollars from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the district is getting six battery-powered school buses, and charging stations on the middle and high school campus.
District Administrator Ryan Krohn says Palmyra-Eagle applied for the funding because it believes the electric buses will emit far less air pollution, have more safety features, and save at least $50,000 per year in net fuel costs.
"So, the savings that we have from diesel savings each year — gasoline savings, and other pieces — with maintenance, have really provided us with two of our major pillars in our school district. One about safety. The second about financial responsibility and sustainability in the future," Krohn says.
And Krohn says as educators, there's another pillar.
"This is about really a mindset of innovation and improvement. If we look to new things for the future, we want our students to have that, thinking about their future," Krohn says.
Krohn says just to make extra sure the buses don't run out of juice, they'll get a little recharge in the middle of the day, between the morning and after-school runs, which go 40 or 50 miles apiece. The big electric vehicles will get a full recharge at night. The bus manufacturer, IC Bus, which is based in Illinois and part of Navistar International, says if need be, the buses can go around 150 miles between charges, with the number a bit less during winter.
The district says it may have to have a diesel-powered bus for long trips by sports teams or student groups. Or, make sure there's a charging station at the destination.
Overall, fifteen Wisconsin school districts are getting a total of 65 electric buses under the first round of the EPA's Clean School Bus Program, funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
The only other districts sort of close to metropolitan Milwaukee are Random Lake and Lomira.
That fits with some controversy over the EPA program, with complaints that the cleaner buses are not getting to larger communities where air pollution and population density are greater.
Tony Maietta works for the EPA in Chicago. He says agency headquarters in Washington has been sent the message.
"I think the playing field is a little more level this year, and I hope EPA has listened to some of the feedback we've heard about that. We'll continue to adjust this program year by year. If folks aren't happy about it, we'll take that feedback into account," Maietta says.
The second round of districts getting financial help will be announced in a few months, while a third application round is underway. The federal program is scheduled to last a few more years.
The new vehicles at Palmyra-Eagle cost about $375,000 dollars apiece. So, even if prices come down, as manufacturers promise, other school districts hoping to make the switch to electric buses will likely be looking for federal aid.
