Rural Missouri - April 2024 - 24

CHARGING
AHEAD
Missouri school districts take advantage of electric buses
by Paul Newton | pnewton@ruralmissouri.coop
alking around his district's newest school
buses, Jake Kloss notes there's no noticeable
dierences etween these fi e uses and the
other 26 in the parking lot. They're all yellow,
mared with assille - chool istrict on the side
and the controls inside are similarly located. Open the
hood, howeer, and the similarities end
The new buses are powered by electricity, not diesel.
'e put some o these uses on longer routes  lie 
miles per day  ust to see how they perorm and how we
can use these eectiely going orward, says ae, assille
chool istrict's director o transportation he ids
lie them
assille's new uses are ust a ew in the eer-growing
 eet o electric school uses coming to districts across the
how-e tate ost o the uses are purchased through
grants or programs and lead to signifi cant cost saings
throughout the school year, school ofi cials say
eith ennis is president o the enefi cial Electrifi cation
eague, a national organiation that promotes the electrifi
cation o the economy Electric school uses represent
a signifi cant upgrade rom conentional diesel-powered
uses, eith says ot only do they not gie o diesel
umes, they are cheaper to run and hae ewer moing
parts, which means less maintenance
no ounty - chool istrict in northeast issouri
was the fi rst district in the state to emrace the electric
uses tudents in an electrical class started taling
24 RURAL MISSOURI | APRIL 2024
W
aout electric ehicles and uperintendent ndy urgeon
thought igger e partnered with ewis ounty ural
Electric ooperatie to see i there was a way to deploy an
electric us into their  eet
" We did a few years of research and decided that if we
could get enough grants and partnerships to get the cost
down to the price o a diesel we would entertain it, ndy
says. " Turns out we were able to get enough support that
the fi rst us only cost us ,
no ounty's fi rst electric us started transporting
students to and rom Edina in early  oday, seen o
the district's  uses are electric ndy says the stated
range on each us is aout  miles ut we'e got driers
who hae gotten really good using the regeneratie
raing y ust easing o the pedal and putting energy
ac into the atteries, he says 'e got driers who are
proaly hitting closer to  or  miles
hey'e had similar results in assille dispatching
electric buses on routes through the hilly terrain in the
southeast corner o the district near ale oc ae t's
a lot smoother ride on the hills too, ae says nstead
of being pulled from an engine in the front that's shifting,
the weight is distriuted more eenly and it's ust smoothly
pushing you up the hill
Jake says the buses' noise, or lack thereof, has
improed the demeanor o the students inside t's ust
a smoother, more comortale ride or one, he says ut
without the roar o the engine, they're not haing to raise
their oices to hae a conersation or to try and tal louder
than the ids net to them hey ust seem to e a little
Rural Missouri - April 2024

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