In a recent study published in PNAS , researchers assess the health and climate benefits of replacing old diesel school buses with electric buses in the United States. Study: Adopting electric school buses in the United States: Health and climate benefits. Image Credit: SEALANDSKYPHOTO / Shutterstock.
com The transportation sector is the most significant contributor to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and subsequent air pollution in the U.S. According to recent estimations, vehicle emissions are associated with around 20,000 deaths every year in the U.
S., with 90% of these deaths caused by exposure to ambient fine particulate matter of 2.5 microns (PM 2.
5 ). In the U.S.
, about 500,000 school buses serve about 24 million students. A significant proportion of these buses are model year (MY) 2005 diesel vehicles, which are estimated to emit 12 times more PM 2.5 for every mile driven than model year 2010 diesel school buses.
Electric vehicles are considered a promising alternative to diesel vehicles in terms of reducing transportation's health and environmental impacts globally. According to one 2023 estimate, 2,277 electric school buses are currently in circulation in the U.S.
, which account for only 0.5% of the nationwide school bus fleet. Studies analyzing vehicle, fuel, maintenance, and insurance costs have suggested that the total cost of purchasing electric buses is about $156,000 USD higher than that for diesel buses in the absence of any subsidies.
Given these high expenses,.
