ELECTRIC SCHOOL BUSES

Every weekday in Los Angeles, tens of thousands of students climb aboard school buses and head to school. Unfortunately, the vast majority of these school buses still run on dirty and outdated fossil fuels, threatening the health and safety of students and their neighborhoods.

In addition to spewing harmful pollutants that add to LA’s already dangerously poor air quality, fossil fuel buses create even more deadly pollution inside the bus, with serious consequences for the students on board. Exposure to higher levels of air pollution is associated with reduced lung development in children, and also reduced academic performance, with lifelong health and economic impacts. Children are especially vulnerable to air pollution and respiratory health problems, increasing the potential for health related absences. The World Resources Institute (WRI) notes that “the magnitude of the impact on lung function is similar to that of exposure to maternal smoking.

Air pollution has a direct and negative impact on education, attendance, and academic achievement. In Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), over 65,000 students suffer from asthma and respiratory health issues, resulting in an estimated 195,000 days of school missed a year, which costs the district $5.85 million every year.  Traffic-related air pollutants have been associated with attention challenges for primary school students, and air pollution has impacts academic performance by causing illnesses that result in absences and leading to cognitive impairment.

Let LAUSD know that our kids deserve electric school buses to protect their health and fully enable their learning potential.

It’s time to upgrade LA’s school bus fleet by replacing polluting buses with 100% clean electric buses. As the best and cleanest transportation on the road, electric school buses are the only way to free our students from breathing dangerous fossil fuel fumes every day, with lasting improvements on student health and academic performance.

Electric school buses aren’t just better for students; they’re better for school districts too. Compared to diesel buses, each electric school bus saves school districts $6,000 per year, by reducing fuel costs by up to 90% and maintenance costs by 75%.

Large districts are all-in on a rapid transition to electric: Montgomery County will replace its 1,400 diesel buses with electric buses in the next 12 years, without any additional cost or job loss. Nationally, school districts across the are implementing 12,275 electric school buses across 38 states, a 10-fold increase in the last year. The technology is ready, and Los Angeles is ready to lead.

Our coalition is leading a movement to electrify all of the school buses in LA County. We work with students, parents, teachers, and administrators to accelerate this transition by encouraging school districts to

• Adopt resolutions to transition to 100%.

• Apply for government funding opportunities to buy electric school buses.

• Develop procurement policies that incentivize manufacturers and contractors with strong workforce standards.

We helped LAUSD seize a pivotal funding opportunity to replace 10 of their outdated diesel buses with all electric models in 2018. Since then, LAUSD has purchased 60 additional electric buses. Our coalition is now working with LAUSD to identify a clear pathway and commitment to 100% electrification by 2035 with clear workforce standards.