School bus fleet operators in California can save significantly on total cost-of-ownership by electrifying their vehicles through the EV Fleet Program. Also, by eliminating tailpipe emissions, buses no longer expose children to harmful diesel exhaust and fumes, which means that school communities become safer and healthier.
Fleet operators can browse an electric vehicle catalog, learn about additional grants and funding, and calculate cost savings, emissions reductions, and more using our EV Fleet Savings Calculator.
For more details, visit the EV Fleet program main page.
- Resources
- Frequently asked questions
EV Fleet School Bus fact sheet
Learn how our program helps school bus fleets easily and cost effectively install charging infrastructure.
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- public-school-ev-fleet-program-overview.pdf
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- 255 KB
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- application/pdf
Total Cost of Ownership
EVs have the potential to offer fleets a lower total cost of ownership (TCO) compared to diesel vehicles.
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- public-school-total-cost-of-ownership.pdf
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- 269 KB
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- application/pdf
Low Carbon Fuel Standard
Earn revenue with electric vehicles and California's Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) program.
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- PGE-EV-Fleet-Low-Carbon-Fuel-Standard.pdf
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- 333 KB
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- application/pdf
Case Study: Madera Unified School District
Madera Unified School District saves on infrastructure costs and eliminates tailpipe emissions with electric school buses.
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- madera-case-study.pdf
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- 96 KB
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- application/pdf
Case Study: Pittsburgh Unified School District
Pittsburgh Unified School District sources renewable energy and eliminates tailpipe emissions with electric school buses.
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- pusd-case-study.pdf
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- 511 KB
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- application/pdf
Case Study: Pittsburgh Unified School District more lessons learned
Learn how a California school district transitioned to electric buses as part of PG&E's Electric School Bus Pilot. Find out how PG&E helped seamlessly install the infrastructure.
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- pusd-case-study-part2.pdf
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- 1 MB
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- application/pdf
Case Study: Thermalito Union Elementary School District
Thermalito Union Elementary School District set out to reduce its carbon footprint by electrifying more than half of the district’s school bus fleet by the end of 2022.
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- Thermalito-Case-Study.pdf
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- 1 MB
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- application/pdf
Benefits and funding for public school fleets
With return-to-base routes and fixed charging locations, school bus operators in California are well positioned to benefit by electrifying their fleets. Gains can include reduced operating costs, fewer instances of unscheduled maintenance and lower maintenance expenses. Plus, battery electric vehicles produce no tailpipe emissions, so they eliminate exposure to the harmful diesel emissions and toxic fumes that diesel-fueled school buses produce.
School bus fleets can take advantage of the growing number of electric school bus offerings available from leading OEMs while demonstrating leadership by aligning with California’s climate goals.
The transportation sector is responsible for more than half of all of California’s carbon pollution, 80 percent of smog-forming pollution and 95 percent of toxic diesel emissions. California leads the nation in developing aggressive climate goals to target these emissions including requiring, by state law, a 40% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. Most recently, Governor Gavin Newsom’s Executive Order issued in September 2020 mandates that all operations of medium- and heavy-duty vehicles shall be 100 percent zero emission by 2045, where feasible. Both the public and private transportation sectors must begin planning and procuring zero emission vehicles and infrastructure now to be meet these quickly approaching regulations.
Webinars and videos
Webinar: Peer-to-Peer Learning
Watch this recorded webinar to learn how Pittsburgh Unified School District has successfully deployed electric vehicles in their fleet.
More EV resources
EV Fleet Charging Guidebook
Learn about charger selection, site planning, understanding electricity costs and more.
Approved charging product list
You can select EV charger options from our approved product list (hosted by Southern California Edison) and receive a rebate of up to 50% of the cost for eligible chargers.