“If you thought electric school buses put Three Rivers on the map, just you wait,” Kenni Schrader said Monday to the Three Rivers Community Schools Board of Education.
Schrader, TRCS’ transportation supervisor, successfully presented a MI Clean School Bus Budget Package Monday. The district has secured $939,946 in funding, which will be used for acquiring two more electric vehicle school buses. Funds include $539,946 from the Michigan Department of Education and $400,000 from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
“We’re going to continue to pursue this clean bus initiative,” Schrader said after the meeting. “We need buses. We’re dealing with an aging fleet, buses that are 20 years old. We need to get them off the road.”
TRCS currently has 18 buses, including two EVs and 16 that run on diesel fuel. The board of education voted 4-0 Monday to approve acquiring two more EVs and equip them with cameras, radios, and other electrical items. The buses have a current production time of approximately 12-16 weeks, board members learned.
“We want to get these old dirty diesel buses off the road,” Schrader said Tuesday. “We want to get their exhaust out of our neighborhoods. Some of our children are on the buses for a longer amount of time as they live farther out of town, and we don’t want them breathing in not only the chemicals sprayed on our fields, but the diesel exhaust coming back into the cabin. It’s creating a better environment for our kids and being responsible stewards for our community.”
Both the EPA and State of Michigan have more funds available for EV school buses, Schrader said. She intends to continue applying, having a goal of TRCS beginning the 2025-2026 school year with six EVs.
“We got our first two five years ago, when there were only 45 nationwide back then. We were not even thinking about how EVs would work in the winter. We got our buses in December and had the first maiden voyage out on our first day back from Christmas break. They ran well,” Schrader recalled.
Asked Monday about whether the buses could run if a charging station was affected by a power failure, Schrader said the vehicles can run even if the charge is not at its fullest. She also mentioned that TRCS’ charging stations do not have backup generators and that their fuel pump is also affected by electricity, since it is directed by an iPad.
For nearly five years, Schrader has spoken about Three Rivers’ role in the national and international EV movement.
“We’re considered a little rural district that can make a difference in clean transportation,” she said Tuesday.
- Vice President Melissa Bliss, Secretary Nichole Cover, and Treasurer Julia Awe were absent from Monday’s meeting.
- The board of education’s next regular meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. Monday, November 18.
Frank Stanko is a staff writer for Watershed Voice.
