As I said in the lively, well attended webinar I co-moderated yesterday with Joe Wachunas on “Using Vehicles To Enhance Building Resilience”, any work that anyone is doing to electrify our fleets is urgent and important. So is any work that improves community resilience to extreme weather events. My TEDx talk, based on the MOVER project concept, offers a scenario of how electric school buses (ESBs) can aid in community resilience.
This issue includes
- Highland’s rise to fame and what it means
- Harvard’s research findings on electric school buses
- A to Z of Utility Speak (from my recent presentation; more fun than it sounds)
- WASBE get-together this weekend in Reno (Women Accelerating School Bus Electrification) (clearly fun)
Highland has been named by Time as one of 2024’s 100 Most Influential Companies due to its innovative leveraging of its energy expertise with capital investment to electrify school bus fleets. Only five years old, the 600 ESBs it operates in 30 states make it the largest ESB owner in the U.S. Its work is gamechanging. I look forward to congratulating some Highland staff in person at the upcoming STN Expo and Conference in Reno Nevada.
Congratulations also to World Resources Institute for releasing its new Electric School Bus Training Standards. See too, its well-researched July 8, 2024 overview of the EPA’s Clean School Bus Program’s progress: 8,000+ ESBs funded to date, mostly to school districts disproportionately impacted by air pollution.
A new Harvard study reports up to $247,600 in climate and health benefits per ESB replacement of diesel, over the ESB’s life. To my knowledge, this is the first high-profile academic research on school buses. Good! But its design frustrates me, because while I and many others care plenty about the health of our climate and kids’ health, bus fleets cannot buy ESBs or chargers with the savings in other sectors that they are citing. The up-front cost of ESBs is the greatest barrier to adopting them. Did the researchers talk with any bus operators when they designed their study?
Sadly, I don’t believe the Harvard study is a game changer, unless it influences policymakers to further fund or otherwise lower the cost of ESBs. I find this 2019 study more helpful in advocating for ESBs; it reports higher test scores for bus-riding students when emissions are reduced.
A to Z of Utility Speak
Adapted from a presentation I recently gave at the Oregon Pupil Transportation Conference. This isn’t definitive; I still have lots to learn about utility speak.
AC: Alternating current.
Behind the meter: Charging from the ground to the bus is the bus fleet’s responsibility, including installing chargers. In front of the meter is the utility’s responsibility.
Buy: Just buy the level of chargers you need, usually Level 2 (much less costly than DCFC, below).
DCFC: Direct current fast charging. The charger is converting the alternating current to direct current. DCFC uses 480 volts (more than most standard outlets).
Demand charges: On your utility bill, similar to speeding tickets, incurred by using lots of electricity at peak times. You want to charge your buses in a way that avoids these extra costs.
Electrician: Required to install your chargers. Utilities aren’t responsible for installing chargers, contrary to intuition.
EVSE: Electric vehicle service equipment, referring to not just chargers but all the infrastructure they entail.
Facilities Manager: A key player in charging. You can use SB 1149 Public Purpose Charge (an Oregon program) to help fund chargers. Other states might have similar funding programs. Consider a request for information (RFI) to learn what you don’t know about charging and infrastructure.
Kilowatt hours (kWh): Unit of electricity, in the way a gallon is a unit of diesel fuel.
Load: In general, how much electricity is being used at a given time. Utilities constantly have to manage their load so that supply meets the existing demands of the customers.
Make ready: Basically, when a utility gets a location set up for chargers. A utility’s make ready program can save you a lot of money. Portland General Electric (PGE)’s Fleet Partner Program provides make ready. Some negotiation is possible on make ready.
Now: The time to build your relationship with your utility.
Owner: As in, owner of the chargers. In Oregon, the owner gets the revenue that accrues from Oregon Clean Fuels Credits.
Peak: When energy demand is highest, peak hours are defined differently for each utility company. This is something you can (and should) ask your utility.
Relationship: Build one of these with your utility, with clear communication and steady information-exchange.
Rate: Ask for the best one your utility can give you.
Site walk: Do a site walk through your bus yard with your utility. Decide carefully where your chargers will go, planning for the future.
Switchgear: Controls the flow of energy from transformer to charger.
Tariff: A utility rate, often regulated by a Public Utility Commission.
Transformer: Steps high voltage energy down from the grid to make it usable to customers.
When will you be charging your ESBs? Your utility needs to know, especially with Level 3 DCFC.
Upgrade: Your district’s electrical capacity may be need to be upgraded as you add ESBs and transition to an electric fleet. This is costly, but may be made more affordable as an “adder” to your monthly electric bill.
V2G: Vehicle to grid, still being developed in many pilot projects nationwide. Discharges energy from ESBs back to the electric grid, ideally during peak hours. V2B is vehicle to building discharging, as in the MOVER project in Hood River Oregon that I’m working on with many partners.
Volts: 208-240 volts are needed for Level 2 charging (alternating current). But 480 volts are needed for Level 3, also known as DCFC.
Zero emissions buses: Only electric buses have zero tailpipe emissions. Healthier for students, drivers, community and climate.
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Women Accelerating School Bus Electrification (WASBE) are getting together this weekend at the STN Expo and conference in Reno. If you didn’t receive my email with the details I sent out to our mailing list on July 9th, reply to this email. Looking forward to being together!
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*Concerning the escalating heat: do you, like me, argue with your partner over what temperature you prefer in your home? Today I am winning because my husband Thor is away at an energy conference. He likes the house to be cool! I like it warm!
Banner Photo Credit: EcoMadres
Alison Wiley (she/her/hers) LinkedInElectric School Bus Newsletter
TEDx talk
I am on the ancestral lands of the Multnomah, Chinook and Cowlitz peoples.
Whose land are you on?