Commercial, Distributed Energy Resources, GHG Emissions  -  May 2, 2023

Broward County Public Schools Adds Electric School Buses  

Broward County Public Schools (BCPS) in Florida added 60 electric school buses to its fleet.

The buses were supplied by Blue Bird Corporation, an electric and low-emission school bus manufacturer. The school district is replacing part of its diesel fleet with zero-emission vehicles through the Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s (DEP) Electric School Bus Project.

Blue Bird will provide its Vision electric school buses to BCPS, which can transport 72 students for up to 120 miles on a single charge. Depending on the charging infrastructure, the bus takes between three and eight hours to recharge fully.

“Broward County Public Schools is excited to be the first school district in South Florida to pilot the use of electric buses in lowering emissions from our bus fleet,” said BCPS Superintendent Dr. Earlean Smiley in a statement. “This project has been in development for several years, and we’re thankful to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and Florida Power & Light for providing the essential funding and infrastructure to make it possible.”

Florida’s Diesel Emissions Mitigation Program provided a grant of nearly $15 million to the school district. These funds are sourced from the Volkswagen Settlement and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Diesel Emissions Reduction Act for projects that mitigate diesel emissions from mobile sources. Florida Power & Light Company, the largest power utility in the state, is providing the supporting vehicle charging infrastructure.

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