Propane business groups say 94 school districts across New York State, including Rush-Henrietta, are adding, or have added, propane-fueled buses to their transportation fleets. Director of Auto-Gas Development Steve Whaley says there are benefits of switching to propane from gas or diesel, including affordability, being 96 percent better for the environment and healthier for students waiting at bus stops who are at eye level to the nitrogen oxides emitted from diesel buses.
The school buses of the future arrived two weeks ago. On Aug. 10, the DeKalb Central school district began hauling students in the state’s only fleet that features seat belts and stop-arm camera in every buses and propane engines in all but a few.
State and local leaders gathered on Thursday to welcome over a dozen new propane-fueled buses to the city’s school bus fleet. Culminating a five-year process that New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu said will serve as a model for other similar projects in the state, the 14 new school buses are fueled by propane autogas will replace 18-year-old diesel vehicles, primarily in the city’s downtown area.
The pandemic has certainly altered the way kids will return to school for the 2020-21 school year. And that includes changes with school bus transportation.
This school year is going to look different than any that have come before it, and school transportation directors have big challenges in front of them. With so much uncertainty surrounding how districts will be required to keep children safe while at school — and the additional funds required to make that happen — it’s very likely many districts will be asking their transportation leaders to find cost-effective solutions to achieve safety guidelines.
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