(Radio Iowa) – The Sioux City Community School District has won a federal grant of almost six-million dollars to buy 15 new school buses, what are considered “clean” buses. Shelly Reimer, a grant project officer with the U-S Environmental Protection Agency, says the grant process was very competitive and Sioux City stood out as an ideal candidate for the effort. “The Clean School Bus program is being funded by the bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which provides $5 billion over five years for schools to replace older diesel buses with new clean school buses,” Reimer says, “which includes electric school buses, propane and compressed natural gas.” The electric buses are proving to be the most popular option, according to Reimer, and she says the clean buses will help to improve the air quality for children and their families, as they’re low- or zero-emission vehicles.

“The diesel exhaust has particulate matter, emissions, nitrogen oxides,” Reimer says. “There’s definitely health benefits for the students and anybody who’s in and around or riding on the buses.” She says the E-P-A is hearing very positive feedback from other school districts that have already made the switch from diesel to electric buses. “They’re keeping their charge, they stay warm, they reliably start up in the morning — which can be an issue with the diesel buses when it gets extremely cold,” Reimer says. “Drivers like them. They’re very quiet.” In addition to being better for the environment, she says the clean buses will be cheaper for school districts to operate.

“There is a savings,” Reimer says. “The schools that are already operating electric buses in their fleet are definitely collecting data and we are hearing reports of significant cost savings in fuel.” Other Iowa school districts have a few weeks to apply for similar grants. The E-P-A is taking applications for the 2023 Clean School Bus Rebate Program through January 31st.