Masséna Central School Traffic Director Raises Concerns About Electric Buses | Education

School districts may request an extension to implement the July 1, 2027 deadline and may be granted an extension of up to two years. However, all purchases and leases by school districts or transportation contractors must be electrified by July 2029.

Jock told school board members that the move to electric buses would be the “biggest hurdle” they face in the future. He said the training is going well, but “the problem is that there are so many untested open questions.” So many things are happening. “

He said one of his biggest concerns is mileage, which varies from conference to conference. The district is served by two buses in the morning and two in the afternoon, operated by the Cooperative Board of Education Services, as well as intercity buses.

“One of the big concerns is mileage. I’ve heard that some of the buses do more miles than they can actually go on a charge. It goes far beyond,” Jock said.

Another concern, he said, is the cost of replacing current diesel-fueled buses with electric buses and the incompatibility of chargers with other companies’ buses.

“No matter which manufacturer you buy from, the final plugin is different for all three companies,” he said. “Now they are making adapters, but of course it comes at a price.”

Jock said he envisions the move to electric buses to be similar to the ever-evolving mobile phone.

“I think they will be exactly like our cell phones. We all remember carrying bags and big batteries and leaving,” he said. “It will be there after all. I just don’t know if it’s still there. So that’s a little worrying.”

These are issues that need to be considered over the next few years, he said.

“I wanted to make sure I brought it up, so we started thinking like that about where we’re going with this,” Jock said. “I think this will be a big challenge for the board and everyone involved.”

The borough is a free participant in a New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) study focused in part on bus electrification.

NYSERDA will provide approximately $40,000 to $50,000 to conduct the Bus Electrification Study. The scope of research includes collecting data on bus route characteristics and energy usage, evaluating charging infrastructure, investigating power capacity of existing facilities, formulating fleet transition procurement plans, and estimating capital and operating costs. .

The survey is being conducted by IBI Group, an architectural firm in the area.