Electric buses coming to Ontario schools in climate change pilot

Province is investing $8 million in the program

Yorkregion.com
Aug. 22, 2017
By Ali Raza

Ontario students will be going to school in electric buses - if the province's new pilot program is successful.

The province is investing $8 million in the Electric School Bus Pilot Program, designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions while transporting students safely and efficiently.

The pilot program is part of Ontario's Climate Change Action Plan. The funds being used are proceeds from the provincial carbon market. Proceeds from the market go to other programs as part of the action plan.

School bus operators providing service in Ontario can apply for funding to purchase an electric school bus and associated charging infrastructure by Oct. 13. The pilot program is scheduled to run from Dec. 1, 2017 to June 30, 2019.

Applicants will be chosen based on experience with student transportation, ability to deliver a pilot project, location, types of routes serviced and size of fleet.

Currently, there are only 100 electric school buses operating in North America, most of which are in California and Quebec.