Page 16 - The Edge Back to School 2022

SUMMER CONFERENCE AND EXPO

BY DON HARRIS
Scott Wisner Ryan Voitik
Driving Your Fleet Toward Electrification

Some school districts are beginning to transition their vehicle ranges can be a big factor,” he said. “Now
fleets to EVs – electric vehicles – at a time when the you’ve got a problem.”
federal government was providing up to $5 billion in
financial assistance. A second issue in getting started is the building that will
house charging equipment. Some are very old and not
Although the deadline for applying for a rebate was suitable, Wisner said. “A lot of facets go into charging,”
August 19, AASBO members were told at the Annual he said. “We are and energy company and that’s in our
Conference and Expo in July that a federal grant wheelhouse. We’ll figure out what you need.”
program for purchasing electric school buses and
charging infrastructure is an option. It’s all part of the On the issue of funding, electric buses are expensive but
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law passed by Congress. the news is good. They cost around $400,000, compared
to a transit bus with a price tag of $900,000 to $1 million,
In a breakout session at the conference, Ryan Voitik, according to Wisner. “School buses are not cheap,” he
Account Executive for Veregy, an energy efficiency said. “Fortunately, the federal government knows that
company, explained that it’s not just a case of buying and stepped up with passage of the Infrastructure Act.”
electric buses – districts also need the power capacity to
make sure the buses keep running. “There are a lot of It’s a program that pays a majority of the cost. For
questions out there, and one of the key ones is: Where example, for priority districts that are low-income, rural
is the money coming from?” Voitik said. or tribal, the rebate was 94% of the cost and 33% of
the charging infrastructure. So if one of those districts
Scott Wisner, Veregy’s Director of Vehicle Electrification purchased five buses for a total of $2 million, the feds
Solutions, provided the answers and issues to address paid $1.875 million, leaving the district with a bill
if you’re thinking of transitioning to electric vehicles. for $125,000. The program paid lesser amounts for
One of the first things to consider – whether you want purchases by other school districts. That compared to
to buy one bus or a whole fleet – is what your system is the grant program which would pay 85% of the cost,
doing today. with the district paying $300,000.

“How far is it traveling, what is the daily cycle?” Wisner “The feds are trying to get you to retire those old diesel
said. “What time does it start in the morning and the start buses,” Wisner said.
time for the afternoon run? Understand the duty cycle.
You need to design the infrastructure to match that.” He cautioned AASBO members about the number of
buses they plan to purchase initially and what their goals
If you’re an inner city district, you might have a 30-mile are. Your goals may change and you don’t want to have
trip run, and a single charge would be good for the entire to build your infrastructure more than once. It involves
day, Wisner said. But if you are a rural district, your what you can justify to your governing board by
buses might be traveling 100 miles or more. “Different showing them the cost benefits, Wisner said. Choosing

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16 THE EDGE BACK TO SCHOOL 2022