A great idea - an electric school bus

I do not know if it will be able to gain traction since school bus operators may balk at what will certainly be a higher cost of initial acquisition but the school bus is perfect for this transition - it goes relatively short distances in a day, returns to a home base where it can be charged and does a lot of start and stop and (currently) idling. 

https://www.curbed.com/2017/11/13/16643698/electric-school-bus-daimler-thomas

Would an electric school bus have the power to handle the steep hills on some Maplewood and South Orange roadways?  This was problem encountered years ago with alternative-fueled buses acquired to transport commuters to and from the train station.

One advantage of electric vehicles is that they have great torque at any speed and do not need gears so an electric buss should be better at hills from a stop or low speed.

Yes, hills are one place where electric motors excel.

Even better idea, The Magic School Bus.

I like this.

Environmentally conscious local governments should push their local school boards to buy electric when buses are replaced.

Even though school boards should really think of this on their own. Do they not claim to be environmental? Or we do we not walk the talk? At least look into it.

That will do a lot more environmentally than preferred EV parking or reduced parking rates or public charging stations. There are so many school buses.

We don't own our busses.  We contract with bus companies.  They are not really big companies set up for large capital investments.  I have been hoping for more electric delivery vehicles for a while, but the tech isn't quite there yet.  And I do own an electric car, so I put my money where my mouth is.  When UPS trucks and contractor vans are electric we will make a real dent.  Then we can move into professional landscaping equipment, and really cut down on pollution.

FilmCarp said:

When UPS trucks and contractor vans are electric we will make a real dent.  Then we can move into professional landscaping equipment, and really cut down on pollution.

Another good idea - local UPS delivery, USPS, FedEx, etc.

FilmCarp said:

We don't own our busses.  We contract with bus companies.  They are not really big companies set up for large capital investments.  I have been hoping for more electric delivery vehicles for a while, but the tech isn't quite there yet.  And I do own an electric car, so I put my money where my mouth is.  When UPS trucks and contractor vans are electric we will make a real dent.  Then we can move into professional landscaping equipment, and really cut down on pollution.

Why don't we own our own busses? I've noticed many of the busses that come to my kids schools have the words "Irvington School District" painted over on their sides.  Is this just a way to deprive the folks in who's hands we put our children's lives of health benefits and an pension?

Consider it a shared service that saves many districts money.

I would love it if it were a Union company.

Klinker said:

Why don't we own our own busses? I've noticed many of the busses that come to my kids schools have the words "Irvington School District" painted over on their sides.  Is this just a way to deprive the folks in who's hands we put our children's lives of health benefits and an pension?

The trend everywhere is to create shareholder value by screwing the person at the bottom. It's a great time to be rich and powerful in the USA. Are janitors ever employees of their workplaces any more? No, they can starve, for all we care.

BG9 said:

FilmCarp said:

When UPS trucks and contractor vans are electric we will make a real dent.  Then we can move into professional landscaping equipment, and really cut down on pollution.

Another good idea - local UPS delivery, USPS, FedEx, etc.

MTA has started to test electric buses.

MTA testing new electric buses on city streets

BG9 said:

MTA has started to test electric buses.

MTA testing new electric buses on city streets

Wow, cool. I want to ride one just for the sake of it, because even though I live in Manhattan, I find I never need to ride a bus.

Until the bus flies, getting around by bus in Manhattan will always suck. Unless you are unable you are almost always better off walking. 

I like the crosstown buses, and especially the subway fare cross honoring.  Very useful.

I just read about how traffic in Manhattan moves significantly more slowly than just five years ago. That matches my observation. Buses are prey to traffic, and this is why buses have limited utility in Manhattan. When a bus has a route that a subway doesn't take, such as crosstown, it can help, especially if it is crossing Central Park. But with the new average speed of traffic, you can, indeed, often walk faster than a surface vehicle moves.

Citi Bike is pretty useful. It's almost always faster than walking. I like the fact that I can take an unplanned trip, since docking stations are densely placed. One advantage it has over taking my own bike is that I can ride Citi Bike in one direction and take another mode in the other direction. But before getting on Citi Bike, it pays to check the smartphone app to find a bike near my starting point and also an open dock near my destination. Sometimes a bike or an open dock is hard to find.