Derek Roch

When the sun is shining, you aren’t thinking about the reliability and resiliency of your fleet. But when severe weather or other power interruption events strike, fleet owners need absolute confidence they can keep their vehicles on the road and moving without reliance on the electrical grid. From winter snowstorms and severe weather to increasingly prevalent forest fires and tropical storms, disruptions to electrical grids and energy distribution networks aren’t a question of if they will happen, but a matter of when they will happen. Fleet owners need to be prepared for the inevitable. That’s where the resiliency and reliability of propane autogas comes into its own.

The fuel that has powered some of the Bonny Eagle district school buses, is not what you would expect.

Bonny Eagle is the first school district east of the Rocky Mountains to utilize school buses fueled by renewable propane. Renewable propane is typically made out of things like used cooking oil, vegetable oil, and animal fat, but is chemically identical to regular propane.

We spoke with Eric McCann, the Senior Director for Fleet Operations in the US, to better understand Bimbo Bakeries’ fleets. Here’s what he had to say.

Today’s school bus fleets have four energy options: diesel, gas, electric, and propane (also referred to as LPG — liquefied petroleum gas — or propane autogas).

In May, two South Dakota transit agencies unveiled the state’s first-ever propane buses. The joint event in Spearfish, South Dakota, brought more than 50 community members, lawmakers, regulators and reporters to celebrate a new era in clean public transportation for South Dakota. Guest speakers included the mayor of Spearfish and Joel Jundt, the secretary of transportation for the South Dakota Department of Transportation. 

Attendees were able to view a fuel demonstration and ride in one of the new vehicles. The event highlights a significant shift in the transit industry away from diesel and gasoline toward vehicles powered by environmentally friendly alternative fuels.

Protecting students as they travel to and from school takes many forms. Parents and educators alike teach kids to be mindful of traffic and responsible while riding and waiting at the bus stop. Drivers are trained to avoid accidents to safeguard the children in their care. Another way to protect kids traveling to and from school involves the mode of transportation they use.

“It’s changing a lot lately.” Garage Star and Shop Foreman Scottie McKinzie discusses going back to school, dealing with mechanic shortages, implementing new technology like safety equipment and propane buses, and streamlining inventory and operations at Futon County Schools in Georgia.