Electric school buses are giving kids a cleaner, but costlier, ride to class

Published

2 years ago

December 10, 2022

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BEVERLY, Mass. — It’s a gray November morning, and we’re on board a long, yellow school bus.

The bus bounces over this Boston suburb’s patched streets in a way that would be familiar to anyone who ever rode a bus to class. But the bus is quiet – and not just because there are no kids on board.

This school bus is electric.

Right now, only a tiny fraction of the roughly 480,000 school buses in America are battery-powered. Most still use gasoline or diesel engines, just as they have for decades. But thanks to fast-maturing electric-vehicle technology – and the new incentives available under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act – electric school buses are set to become much more common over the next decade.

“It’s like a big huge go-kart,” said the bus driver on that November day, who’s been driving school buses, mostly gas-powered, for over three decades. “When you accelerate, you move. When you stop accelerating, you stop. And you don’t hear any sound.”

“Driving a diesel bus is not like driving a go-kart,” she said.

Greener pastures

Environmental activists have been working for years to try to replace diesel and gasoline school buses with new electric models. Until recently, they faced some big challenges: Only a couple of companies made fully electric school buses, prices were very high, and the need for new “refueling” and maintenance infrastructure to replace tried-and-true diesel proved too daunting for many school officials.

That’s starting to change. Over the last couple of years, more companies — including long-established school-bus manufacturers — have begun making electric school buses, government subsidies have increased, and regulators and nonprofits have worked to educate school districts, utilities and the general public about the advantages.

But this isn’t like selling electric vehicles to drivers. School districts have to navigate a confusing array of subsidies and restrictions — and deal with the awkward fact that right now, a new EV bus costs a lot more than a traditional diesel-powered bus (in fact, three to four times as much).

It’s hard to make a battery-electric version of a long-haul truck, like EV startup Nikola is working on, as the batteries required to deliver the distance weigh a lot and take hours to recharge.

But the case for a school bus — which needs only limited range of mileage, and has plenty of idle time to recharge — is much simpler. And the advantages to the traditional buses are clear.

They’re much better, and their savings are much greater once you actually get them into the depot.

Sue Gander

Director at the World Resources Institute

Not only do electric school buses, or ESBs, help the environment — by not expelling diesel fumes or other emissions —they’re also better for the children they carry, particularly those suffering from chronic respiratory conditions such as asthma.

Like other electric vehicles, ESBs are also likely to have lower maintenance costs over time than their internal-combustion counterparts.

Plus, the buses’ large batteries can store and deliver energy to power buildings and other devices, whether temporarily in an emergency or as part of a larger renewable-energy strategy.

Driving up costs

All of those advantages come with a price tag, however.

ESBs are expensive: Battery-electric versions of small “Type A” school buses cost roughly $250,000, versus $50,000 to $65,000 for diesel; full-size “Type C” or “Type D” buses can range from $320,000 to $440,000 in electric form, versus about $100,000 for diesel.

“They’re much better, and their savings are much greater once you actually get them into the depot,” Sue Gander, a former U.S. Environmental Protection Agency official, told CNBC in a recent interview. “But the upfront is such that, without [government] incentives, you can’t break even [in comparison to diesel buses].”

Gander leads the World Resources Institute’s Electric School Bus Initiative, a project funded in part by the Bezos Earth Fund established by Amazon’s founder, Jeff Bezos. The initiative works with school officials, utility companies and ESB manufacturers to try to accelerate the adoption of zero-emission school buses.

“We think for the next three or four years, as costs come down, as scale goes up, we’ll need to have those incentives in place to make the numbers work,” she said.

And like other electric vehicles, ESBs will require new infrastructure: At minimum, a school district or bus operator will need to install chargers and retrain their mechanics to service the new buses’ battery-electric drivetrains and control systems.

A Thomas Built electric school bus in Beverly, Massachusetts.

John Rosevear | CNBC

For small school districts, and those in low-income areas, the costs and challenges can be daunting.

Duncan McIntyre is trying to make it easy, or at least easier, for school districts to go electric. After years in the solar-energy business, he founded a company, Highland Fleets, that aims to make the switch to electric buses simple and affordable for school districts and local governments around the country.

“You’ve got more expensive equipment, but it operates much cheaper,” he said, noting that — as with other EVs — the costs of charging and maintaining an electric school bus are considerably lower than with gas or diesel buses.

The last piece, he says, “which everyone overlooks, is that those bus batteries can send power back to the grid to meet peak demand. And that’s an energy market’s opportunity to create additional revenue.”

Government incentives

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law passed late last year includes $5 billion in subsides for low- and zero-emission school buses over the next five years.

The EPA, charged with administering those subsidies, said in September about 2,000 U.S. school districts had already applied for the subsidies, with over 90% of those applications requesting electric buses. (The remainder were seeking subsidies for low-emissions buses powered by propane or compressed natural gas, the agency said.)

Not all of those applications, which combined amount to nearly $4 billion in subsidies, will be approved immediately. The EPA awarded about $1 billion in funds in October, giving priority to low-income, rural, and tribal communities. It expects to distribute another $1 billion in 2023.

California offers state-level subsidies, through its Air Resources Board, of up to $235,000 per bus, plus an additional $30,000 per bus for charging equipment. The agency set aside $122 million for the program this year.

Colorado has made available $65 million in funding for a similar program. And New York, Connecticut, Maryland and Maine all moved to set up similar programs this year, with New York the first to target a 100% electric school bus fleet by 2035.

The money is helpful, but Gander said school districts still need to think through all of the aspects of going electric.

“It’s really about supporting school districts, helping them understand where do electric buses fit into my fleet at the moment? And how do I plan for continuing to add them in to my fleet as I go along?” Gander said. “How do I develop the infrastructure? How do I access the funding and financing that’s out there? And how do I involve the community in this process?”

Environment

Volvo DD25 Electric compactor gets to work in Yolo County, California

Published

12 hours ago

January 12, 2025

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Volvo DD25 Electric compactor gets to work in Yolo County, California

California County Adds First Electric Volvo DD25 Compactor to Fleet

Yolo County, California depends on its climate for continued agricultural success. As such, the county’s leaders are taking environmental stewardship seriously by aiming for full carbon neutrality by 2030. To help achieve that goal, they’re putting zero-emission machinery like the Volvo DD25 Electric compactor to work.

We got our first chance to sample the DD25 Electric at Volvo Days last summer, where the all-electric tandem roller’s vibrating drums impressed dealers and end users alike. It was no surprise, then, that when Yolo Country fleet superintendent, Ben Lee, when shopping for a compactor the DD25 Electric was high on his list.

“The DD25 Electric will help us achieve our goals in several ways,” explains Lee. “By reducing emissions, lowering noise levels, being more energy-efficient, improving working conditions and promoting environmentally friendly practices … we’ll use it to compact soil, gravel and other base materials for road and foundation projects, as well as rolling out and leveling asphalt during road construction and resurfacing.”

To help Lee handle those various projects, the Volvo’s drum frequency can be adjusted from 3500 vpm (55 Hz) to 4000 vpm (67 Hz) to cater to different applications and materials.

The DD25 Electric offers other benefits, as well – like a 20 kWh 48V battery that offers up between six and eight hours of continuous operation. That’s could be several shifts in the kind of conditions Yolo’s work crews will encounter, meaning it will only have to get put to bed (Volvo recommend overnight AC charging) two or three times a week.

Getting power to the compactor, too, is something Yolo is considering. “There are some remote areas in the county, so we’re looking into a mobile, self-contained charging unit as well,” explains Lee, apparently referencing the Volvo PU130 mobile battery. “So we wouldn’t have to bring the machine back to the yard each night during a long-term project.”

Yolo County views electric equipment as an essential step in reducing emissions and energy consumption, especially as communities work towards stricter regulations and sustainability goals.

Electrek’s Take

Ed Galindo, E-Mobility Product Manager at VCES, educates Yolo employees; via Volvo CE.

This press release came to us ahead of the devastating wild fires in Southern California that are dominating headlines right now – so much so that I effectively sat on the news for a few days, debating whether or not we should even be talking about a California news story that isn’t about the fires right now.

But I realized: this story is about the fires. Climate change driven by combustion and carbon emissions is driving climate change and that’s making fires like these possible … and I should have run it sooner.

SOURCE | IMAGES: Volvo CE.

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Environment

CES2025 | Kubota brings electric equipment, robots, and hydrogen to CES

Published

13 hours ago

January 11, 2025

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CES2025 | Kubota brings electric equipment, robots, and hydrogen to CES

Kubota Unveils Wide Range of Customer Solutions at CES® 2025, Brings More Connectivity and Automation to Its Equipment Portfolio.

Kubota came to this year’s CES with a sprawling display filled with electric equipment, hydrogen gensets, and an onslaught of commercial robots ready to mow, farm, dig, and build. If you weren’t impressed by Kubota’s display this year, you weren’t paying attention.

Kubota gave us a sneak peek of its KATR farm robot – itself a smaller, updated version of last year’s New Agri Concept – before the doors officially opened last week. Kubota’s robotic farm buddies promise to be able to quietly and autonomously haul stuff from one end of the farm to another, or pull carts and specialized implements along predetermined paths.

KATR uses self-leveling technology and active suspension to ensure its cargo deck stays level when working on the sort of uneven terrain found on farms or construction sites.

Kubota KATR w/ self-leveling cargo deck; photo by the author.

That doesn’t mean the New Agri Concept is dead, though. Agri Concept 2.0 debuted as an electric tractor concept offering AI-powered automation and a fully electric powertrain. The new version features a Lite Brite-style “grille” that it uses to communicate its current mode, direction, and other important information with the people it shares a job site with.

On the more practical side, Kubota showed off its KX38-4e Electric compact excavator. First shown in overseas markets in 2022, the KX38-4e Electric features a 49.2 kWh lithium-ion battery that’s good for up to five hours of continuous operation. More than enough to complete a typical day of work on a construction site when you factor out idle time.

An onboard DC fast charger means it can be quickly recharged between shifts, too. But when there’s no grid power on the site, charging can be a challenge. That’s why Kubota has hydrogen genset for zero-emission on-site power generation.

Looked at individually, each of the new electric Kubota products on display might be impressive. The real magic, though, is in the way the Kubota machines work together as a holistic job site or farm solution.

“At Kubota, we believe that truly listening to our customers drives innovation in every aspect of what we call the ‘Work Loop’,” explains Brett McMickell, Chief Technology Officer of Kubota North America. “The Work Loop — an essential cycle of assessing, analyzing, and acting — has always been fundamental to effective task management. With the integration of advanced sensors, AI-driven analysis, networking protocols, automation, and robotics, we are enhancing this cycle to be more seamless and efficient than ever before.”

That was obvious in some of the more thoughtful implements and attachments on display, including a Smart Plant Imager that uses advanced robotics and “hyper-spectral imaging” cameras to capture real-time data and insights on a plant-by-plant level – as well as a Smart Autonomous Sprayer and Robotic Pruner that that classifies buds and canes based on position and fruiting potential, it optimizes production precision and accuracy.

The more you look, the more impressive Kubota’s farming solution gets. “We will continue to learn from many of our customers across segments to iterate the next product and technology solution that will help them manage tomorrow’s challenges and grow their businesses,” McMickell added. “This is how Kubota works to make a better quality of life for individuals and society.”

There was more, of course. Autonomous versions of the company’s electric zero-turn mower with GPS-powered route memory, fun accessory baskets for the robots, even a weird, jet engine looking thing that I forgot to ask about (below). I was genuinely impressed, in other words, and can’t wait to see what Kubota comes up with next year.

Kubota CES2025 | more photos

Original content from Electrek.

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Environment

Tenways C GO 600Pro commuter e-bike is as smooth as it gets

Published

17 hours ago

January 11, 2025

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Tenways C GO 600Pro commuter e-bike is as smooth as it gets

The e-bike industry has stalled a little bit in terms of features, and with harsh new legislation coming in from places like California, maybe it is time to start looking at e-bikes that are light, efficient, and smooth rather than how much wattage they can output. The Tenways CGO 600Pro, which comes in at just 37 pounds, is a model e-bike you should keep an eye on…

The CGO 600Pro comes in 2 flavors: a carbon belt single-speed version that Micah reviewed and this one, which is a chain and 8-speed Shimano gears. The belt drive is going to win out on simplicity and weight but if you are expecting to get close to the ‘class 1’ top speed of 20mph or need to go up some significant hills, you’ll want to opt for the chain/gear version here.

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One thing I love about this bike is the tradeoff decisions. These keep the price low and weight down while still providing a great ride. The spec sheet overall is solid but not top-shelf.

Tenways CGO600 Pro tech specs (chain/geared version)

Motor: 350 Watt rear hub motor with 45 Nm of torque
Top speed: 20 mph (32 km/h)
Range: Claimed up to 53 miles (85 km)
Battery: 36V 10Ah (360 Wh)
Weight: 37 lb (16.8 kg, over 40lbs with fenders, kickstand, etc)
Frame: 6061 aluminum alloy
Tires: CST Puncture-proof 700*45C-size Tires
Brakes: Tektro dual-piston hydraulic disc brakes
Gearing: Shimano 8-Speed Claris
Extras: Compact LED display, 4 pedal assist levels, slim fender set, kickstand, internally routed cables, LED lighting, removable battery, Tenways app integration, torque sensor, four color options

No Throttle?

Note that as a class 1 e-bike, neither belt/chain version has a throttle. While this may be controversial to some, it not only simplifies the bike, it makes it a Class 1, which will be legal in the most places. I tend to think of no throttle as a “foot throttle” and for the commuter application, this will serve well. Would I appreciate a throttle on a hill start? Perhaps.

The idea of this bike is to just enhance your pedal bike experience. You are going to get some exercise on this bike versus a bike that is a glorified low-power moped that runs on throttle with vestigial pedals.

More importantly, the torque sensor here is phenomenal; I mean, it is probably the best torque sensor I’ve ridden connected to a rear hub motor. The acceleration is smooth and strangely powerful for the 350W/45nm motor. Significant hills are a breeze, and this is one of the few bikes where I forget that I’m using an e-bike sometimes (until I look down and I’m going 20mph with little effort). Hills are also where the gearing really helps.

The tires are also the perfect size for a commuter with puncture resistance and treads that will do OK in rain and snow.

The bike itself is also very stealthy in terms of showing that it is a powered e-bike. The small 36V, 10Ah battery is integrated magnificently into the narrow downtube of the bike. All of the cables are integrated into the bike frame for a super-clean look. The rear hub motor is small but packs a punch. Many people won’t even recognize this as an e-bike. While I’m proud to be riding an e-bike around, perhaps some people would like to keep that on the down-low.

Brakes are great with hydraulic Tektros clasping against 160mm rotors in front and back. It is such a light bike that stopping can be jarring.

Assembly was super easy and took about 30 minutes with the included tool set. The battery came about 40% charged but was ready to go within a few hours with the 3A charger. Shoutout to Tenways for using a water-resistant standardized barrel charger adapter and not some proprietary adapter so that I can use one from another bike when I inevitably lose it.

Electrek’s take

The Tenways CGO600 is a fantastic light, clean, stiff and smooth e-bike that I have 0 reservations about recommending. While the battery and motor are small, they power the light bike admirably and for around 50 miles (your mileage will vary).

Currently there is a $200 off promotion code “HAPPY2025TW” at checkout bringing the CGO600Pro down to $1399 which is an amazing price for this bike: