Amid air quality concerns, districts embrace electric buses

By MICHAEL CASEY
Associated Press

BOSTON (AP) — Efforts to make school buses greener are gaining momentum thanks to billions of dollars in spending in the federal infrastructure plan. A collection of parents, students, environmentalists and lawmakers argues school districts should transform their fleets from diesel to electric vehicles. They say the shift would offer health benefits to children while also addressing concerns that fossil fuel-burning buses are bad for the environment. The transition until now has largely stalled because cash-strapped districts lacked money to buy more expensive electric buses. But that could change if Congress approves the infrastructure bill that includes $5 billion for electric and hybrid buses.