{"id":351628,"date":"2026-09-20T11:34:22","date_gmt":"2026-09-20T11:34:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/351628\/"},"modified":"2026-09-20T11:34:22","modified_gmt":"2026-09-20T11:34:22","slug":"a-new-york-pilot-is-speeding-electric-school-bus-rollouts-with-less-construction-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/351628\/","title":{"rendered":"A New York pilot is speeding electric school bus rollouts with less construction"},"content":{"rendered":"

New York City is expanding its electric school bus fleet after a pilot project found that a simpler charging setup could cut infrastructure costs by 20%, according to Electrek<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The move will add 40 electric school buses for NYC Public Schools in Brooklyn and Queens while offering a potential model for other dense cities looking to electrify large fleets without major construction work or soaring installation costs.<\/p>\n

Here’s what to know<\/p>\n

Their rollout builds on a Con Edison demonstration that explored a less disruptive way to install charging equipment in dense urban settings.<\/p>\n

A key part of that effort was First Charge, First Student’s above-ground charging system.<\/p>\n

By running electrical lines overhead rather than burying them in trenches, the setup reduces construction in paved bus yards, speeds installation, and cuts infrastructure costs by 20%.<\/p>\n

Vicki Kuo, senior vice president of Customer Energy Solutions at Con Edison, addressed the initiative’s specifics.<\/p>\n

“Eliminating the need to bury the service line to these chargers lowers the upfront costs for First Student and is a strategy that other fleet owners can replicate to save money and complete projects more quickly,” she explained.<\/p>\n

More background<\/p>\n

Con Edison and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority also supported the pilot.<\/p>\n

Through NYSERDA’s New York School Bus Incentive Program, the project received six electric school bus vouchers, along with support to convert four diesel buses to electric.<\/p>\n

The move also fits into New York State’s zero-emission transportation timeline.<\/p>\n

State rules require newly purchased school buses to be zero-emission by 2027, and the full fleet must meet that standard by 2035.<\/p>\n

For students, families, and surrounding communities, that means quieter streets, cleaner air near schools, and less exposure to diesel tailpipe pollution.<\/p>\n

What’s being done?<\/p>\n

To manage charging, First Student is using load-management software that schedules buses to charge during off-peak periods, when electricity is usually cheaper.<\/p>\n

For a large fleet, that planning can help control energy costs and reduce strain on the grid.<\/p>\n

First Student is also considering additional clean energy features for its Brooklyn facilities, including solar power and a smart energy hub.<\/p>\n

Installing workable charging infrastructure remains one of the biggest challenges in fleet electrification, separate from purchasing the vehicles themselves.<\/p>\n

In dense cities, where excavation can be costly and disruptive, overhead charging systems can help schools, transit agencies, and private fleets move ahead faster.<\/p>\n

“Deploying electric school buses at scale requires more than vehicles; it requires the right infrastructure, technology, and utility partnership,” said Kevin Matthews, head of electrification at First Student.<\/p>\n

“Working with Con Edison, we’ve demonstrated a more efficient approach that can help overcome some of the cost and construction challenges that have traditionally made fleet electrification difficult in dense urban environments,” he added.<\/p>\n

Where can I learn more?<\/p>\n

These articles on electric school bus costs and EV incentives show how widespread electrification efforts are taking shape nationwide.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Across the U.S., orders for electric school buses<\/a> rose tenfold since early last year.<\/p>\n

\u2022 School districts can see lifetime savings of up to $173,000<\/a> per electric bus.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Many EV owners say cheap charging and lower maintenance<\/a> prompted them to switch.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Los Angeles will offer an extra $4,000 to help low-income residents buy EVs<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Taken together, they illustrate a gradual shift away from gas-powered transportation and how policy initiatives can facilitate the switch.<\/p>\n

Get TCD’s free newsletters<\/a> for easy tips, smart advice, and a chance to earn $5,000 toward home upgrades. To see more stories like this one, change your Google preferences here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"New York City is expanding its electric school bus fleet after a pilot project found that a simpler…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":351629,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[131310,1168,131314,131313,131312,9,24,55,54,131311,49,56,3058],"class_list":["post-351628","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-york-city","tag-charging-equipment","tag-con-edison","tag-customer-energy-solutions","tag-dense-cities","tag-diesel-buses","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-new-york-city-headlines","tag-new-york-city-news","tag-new-york-school-bus-incentive-program","tag-new-york-state","tag-ny","tag-school-bus"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/351628","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=351628"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/351628\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/351629"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=351628"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=351628"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=351628"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}