Editorial: Money well spent on switch to electric school buses

By The Herald Editorial Board

The wheels on the bus still go ‘round and ‘round, but for more school children in Snohomish County and the rest of Washington state, they are also much quieter and healthier for students and the rest of the community.

School districts in the county, like those across the state and country, are taking advantage of state and federal grants that have helped subsidize the costs of purchasing electric- or propane-powered school buses, relegating the old-school diesel-powered buses to the recycle yard.

A new study is now showing how that switch to electric buses will pencil out for more school districts, making the case to ramp up the transition away from diesel and toward cleaner transportation.

Several districts, including Snohomish and Everett, already are transporting students on electric and propane vehicles. The Everett School District, which contracts with Durham School Services, has put three electric buses on routes, courtesy of a state Department of Ecology grant, with plans to add six more over the next two school years. The Snohomish School District, also with an Ecology grant, purchased its first electric bus in 2022, and with a federal Environmental Protection Agency grant purchased 11 propane-fueled buses, according to recent reporting by The Herald’s Ta’Leah Van Sistine.

https://www.heraldnet.com/opinion/editorial-money-well-spent-on-switch-to-electric-school-buses/