Bethlehem district unveils electric school buses

The Bethlehem Area School District recently unveiled two electric school buses. The purchase of the electric buses, related infrastructure along with job training for the bus drivers was all part of a $1 million state grant received October 2022.

The district worked with local utility provider PPL for over a year to evaluate and plan for the infrastructure upgrades needed to support electrification of BASD’s bus fleet. The district installed new direct current fast chargers at the transportation department and PPL extended additional electric service onto the transportation department’s parking lot to support the new electric charging demand.

The district ordered two Thomas Saf-TLiner C2 “Jouley” all-electric buses. Jouley has a stated maximum range of 138 miles and will transform the student bus ride experience. There are zero emissions to impact kids and the community while the quieter ride will increase driver’s awareness of what is going on inside the bus. After returning from delivering students to school, the buses can be plugged in to achieve a full charge before leaving to deliver students home at the end of the day using the newly installed DC fast chargers.

The new electric buses are also vehicle-togrid compatible, allowing the buses to push stored energy back onto the grid in times of need.