Enlarge / Lightning eMotors will supply EV powertrains to Collins Bus to electrify these Type A school buses. (credit: Collins Bus)
These days, I’m just as excited about electrifying things like school buses and garbage trucks as I am passenger cars. As usual, replacing a hot and noisy gasoline or diesel powertrain with batteries and electric motors makes life better for the drivers (and riders, in the case of a bus), with less noise and vibration—benefits that extend to everyone else in near proximity, too.
Even better news is that school districts around the country are in the process of electrifying their bus fleets. Montgomery County, Maryland, and the Commonwealth of Virginia have both announced ambitious plans that also involve using the buses as vehicle-to-grid energy storage when not in use.
Here in the District of Columbia, sandwiched between Montgomery County and Northern Virginia, the city is also finalizing its electrification roadmap. Unlike its suburban neighbors, its fleet of buses are the smaller Type A buses, but there’s an ever-growing selection of these to choose from.
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