Alternative school transportation
demonstration tour of the eLion all-electric bus. The manufacturer, Lion Bus of Canada, is working with environmental groups to urge school districts to add the buses to their fleets.
The vehicle itself looks like any other school bus with the notable absence of a tailpipe.
"Let's face it: Diesel pollution is bad for the environment, bad for public health and bad for our children," said Susan Mudd, senior policy advocate for the Environmental Law & Policy Center, a cosponsor of the event.
"Children, whose lungs are still developing, are among the most vulnerable to the many negative direct effects of direct exposure to diesel pollution."
Ohio is in line for more than $70 million in proceeds from multistate settlements with Volkswagen related to the automaker's diesel vehicles being caught cheating on emissions testing. The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency is overseeing how the money will be spent.
Richard Hicks, director of environmental protection for Columbus Public Health, said the shift to all-electric school vehicles would be a step toward reducing childhood asthma and other health conditions related to air pollution.
Also present was a representative from Smart Columbus — a partnership between government and businesses to use parts of the city as a proving ground for high-tech transportation systems — who said that the deployment of all-electric buses would complement what the partnership is doing.
The Columbus event was the final stop on a weeklong Midwest tour to promote the idea of using the settlement money for all-electric buses.
The demonstration began at Fort Hayes Metropolitan Education Center, where Columbus City Schools parks its buses. The school district has 856 buses in its fleet, of which six are diesel-electric hybrids.
A diesel bus has a price range of roughly $100,000 to $150,000. An all-electric bus often costs more than $200,000. The actual costs vary based on add-ons, bulkbuying discounts and many other factors.
“It’s the most efficient technology you’ll find for the school bus industry,” said Cyril Gauchet, a representative from the Quebec provincial government, who was there to support Lion Bus. The bus company is based in the Montreal area.
That said, there are other technologies that also market themselves as a cleaner option for schools. They include buses that run on compressed natural gas and propane.
Lion Bus is one of several manufacturers that make or plan to make all-electric buses.
As is often the case with all-electric vehicles, much of the early adoption has happened in California, according to School Bus Fleet magazine. The buses have been available for only about two years.