Assisting Massachusetts with Electric School Bus Deployment

Photo of children outside a school bus

Project Brief

The Challenge

Diesel and gasoline-powered school buses produce greenhouse gas emissions and other pollutants that are harmful to students, drivers, and local communities. Studies show that replacing school bus fleets with electric school buses provides a cleaner transportation alternative with health, environmental, and cost benefits. Yet replacing buses requires significant funding and specialized technical expertise that few school districts possess. To benefit its communities and help achieve decarbonization goals in the Massachusetts 2050 Decarbonization Roadmap, which calls for an 85 percent reduction in greenhouse gases from a 1990 baseline by 2050, Massachusetts is targeting the electrification of school buses.


ERG's Solution

ERG supports the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center and eight Massachusetts school districts in meeting electrification goals set by the state. ERG provides these districts with the technical expertise they need to replace existing school bus fleets with electric models using funds from the award-winning MassCEC Accelerating Clean Transportation (ACT) School Bus Program. ERG develops scalable and replicable planning documents that have included a fleet transition work plan and charging station and charging infrastructure deployment plans. ERG also helps with public reporting, measurement and verification activities, and coordinating with third-party vendors, school bus operators, state and local approval authorities, and electric utility providers.


Client

Massachusetts Clean Energy Center