Kids waiting at the bus stop in Wisconsin this year will be introduced to a new sort of school supply, an item much bigger than their new back-to-school sneakers. Plug-in electric school buses are set to carry children in southeastern Wisconsin back to school, where the kids’ own special kicks can carry them and their newly-minted folders and notebooks from classroom to classroom.

wisconsin solar hybrid bus

 

The 11 hybrid electric-diesel buses heading out to neighborhoods in the Oconomowoc school district are expected to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 30 to 40 percent compared to traditional diesel-only buses. A battery-driven electric motor will work in tandem with a conventional diesel motor to power the buses. This is much like the famed Toyota Prius passenger car, but these buses will have the ability to plug into electrical outlets to recharge (though a small number of Priuses do have this ability through the Google-sponsored RechargeIT experiment).

The Oconomowoc Transportation Company’s small fleet is expected to have twice the fuel efficiency of their diesel counterparts. The buses are supplied by the IC Corporation, an affiliate of Illinois-based truck and engine manufacturer Navistar International. In addition to fuel and fuel cost savings, the buses should save money through less maintenance costs due to reduced wear and tear on their engines.

Solar Charging Stations

To avoid trading fossil-fueled driving emissions for fossil fuel power plant emissions (used when recharging the buses’ batteries), a solar-powered recharging station was installed at the fleet’s garage. The solar system will produce over 60,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity per year to charge bus batteries.

Another Wisconsin school transit company, the Riteway Bus Service, is scheduled to receive 13 IC Corporation plug-in hybrid buses as well, including its own solar recharging station.

Recovery Act Funding

$3.6 million was handed out by the Wisconsin Clean Transportation Program to help fund the 24 buses and two solar recharge stations. That money is part of the state of Wisconsin’s funding allocation under the federal Recovery Act, signed by President Obama and used to promote energy efficiency and renewable energy development in all 50 states.

Source: Brighter Energy
Photo Credit: IC Bus