The Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) in California has completelyelectrified its school bussystem, making it the first major U.S. school district to do so. The fleet has74 all-electric busesmade by Zūm, a Redwood City-based mass transit system company.
School Buses Environmental Effect
School transportation is the largest transport system in the USA. There are 500,000 school buses in operation around the U.S., and 90% of them are traditionally-fueled. These buses transport 27 million school children twice a day, emitting more than 8.4 million tons of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere every year.
In addition to harming the environment, students, as well as communities, are exposed to these fumes. The newEV school busesin Oakland alone will reduce around 25,000 metric tons of greenhouse gases annually.
Zūm All-Electric School Buses
Student transportation in the OUSD area will be decarbonized thanks to these new buses, and 2.1 gigawatt hours of energy will be sent back to the grid every year with the help of the advanced bidirectional chargers on each bus.
These chargers can send electricity both ways, charging the bus batteries and also taking any unused energy from the bus and sending it back to the power grid. They are managed with a VPP (virtual power plant) smart system that uses AI to work out how much electricity the bus needs, and how much it should send back to the grid, and when.
Zūm’s 100% Electric School Transport Plans
The electrification of OUSD’s school bus system is just the first of many such projects Zum is aiming to complete in the near future, with the company busy trying to turn every single one of the nation’s school transport systems electric.
The plan is to electrify 10,000 school buses with bidirectional chargers as soon as possible. This could send 300 gigawatt hours of energy per year back to local power grids, helping power homes, businesses, and communities in an eco-friendly way.
Collaborative Effort
The Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PGEC) was Zum’s partner on this project, taking care of upgrades to infrastructure and equipment needed to power the chargers effectively and reliably. The utility company swiftly provided Zum’s EV facility in Oakland with 2.7 megawatts of load. Thanks to the mutual effort, the project was finalized a year before schedule.
PGEC wasn’t Zum’s only partner in the project; none of it would be possible without help from the EPA’s Clean School Bus program, the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, the California Air Resources Board, Clean Mobility Options programs, and Heavy Vehicle Incentive Program vouchers.
Image Credit:Zum Services Inc.
