Electric School Bus Grants Given to 4 Mass. Districts

BOSTON — Four school districts in Massachusetts were awarded grants last month for the purchase of electric school buses and chargers.

Acton-Boxborough Regional School District, Amherst Public Schools, Cambridge Public Schools, and Concord Public Schools were given the grants through the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources’ new Vehicle-to-Grid Electric School Bus pilot program, which aims to reduce school districts’ petroleum use and test the benefits of electric school bus technology.

“Massachusetts schools are leading the way by testing clean and resilient energy technology that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the transportation sector,” Gov. Charlie Baker said. “This innovative project will also reduce fuel costs and aid our commitment to a cleaner future for the commonwealth.”

State officials said that the Vehicle-to-Grid Electric School Bus pilot is intended to demonstrate that electric drive technology can help reduce emissions in the transportation sector and that school buses can provide electric storage for the grid.

The pilot project will be administered by the Vermont Energy Investment Corporation. It will consider the costs and benefits of operating electric school buses to determine whether the technology should be more widely adopted. Officials said that the goal is to reduce petroleum usage by about 22,680 gallons of gasoline equivalent.

“Not only will this pilot help Massachusetts transition to increased electric vehicles, but it will also demonstrate the opportunity to transport our children in clean vehicles, which will reduce costs and is better for our environment,” said Judith Judson, commissioner of the Department of Energy Resources. “These school buses will also make these four schools more resilient by providing backup power from the bus battery.”

The four school districts were each awarded grants of up to $350,000 for electric Type C school buses and chargers.