First Student, an electric school bus provider, has been awarded $3.95 million by the US Environmental Protection Agency to deliver 10 electric school buses and chargers to transport hundreds of students across Cincinnati Public Schools (CPS).
“Cincinnati Public Schools is committed to safe, efficient transportation for our students and sustainable systems to enable success, as outlined in our new Strategic Plan,” said Iranetta Wright, CPS Superintendent. “This investment in school bus electrification isn’t just a step toward sustainability, it supports the well-being of our students, families, and communities.”
Funding for the electric school buses was provided by the EPA’s Clean School Bus Program to accelerate the deployment of electric school buses across the US. In total, the EPA has provided enough funding to First Student to deploy more than 370 new electric school buses in school districts across the country.
“The deployment of electric school buses will mean lower emissions on our streets, around our schools, and in the air our children breathe,” said Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval.
First Student will partner with CPS to deploy the 10 buses over the next 18 months. According to the company, replacing one diesel school bus with an electric alternative can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 54,000 pounds each year.
In total, First Student hopes to transition 30,000 of its diesel-powered school buses to electric by 2035.
“This award is a big win for our community and for the future of America’s electric school bus fleet,” said First Student CEO and President John Kenning. “We work with districts, utilities, and municipalities to build the necessary charging and maintenance infrastructure to support electric school buses and are especially proud to be doing so in partnership with Cincinnati Public Schools.”
