Denver Public Schools now has 28 electric school buses, up from three, after adding 25 new ones this year. That makes electric buses 12% of the district's yellow bus fleet. To keep them charged, the district built a new hub at its Hilltop Bus Terminal with 26 charging plugs and 650 kilowatts of total power, supplied by equipment maker Kempower. The system spreads power across buses based on need, giving more charge to buses with longer routes ahead and less to those that need it.
This is a fleet story, not a home-upgrade one, but the cost numbers are worth noting if you're curious about electric vehicles generally. Each electric bus costs about $400,000, versus $140,000 for a diesel bus, though grants and rebates covered the buses and charging equipment for DPS. The district expects to spend around $1,900 a year on electricity per bus, compared with $6,800 for diesel fuel, and anticipates roughly 75% less maintenance since electric buses have no engine or transmission. Each bus has a $93,000 battery under an eight-year warranty. DPS doesn't yet have enough data to say how the two bus types compare over their full lifespan.
The push also reflects health concerns: diesel exhaust has been linked to asthma and lung damage, and most U.S. school buses still run on diesel. Kempower says it's supplying similar charging systems for school bus fleets in several other states, including Louisiana, Kansas, Massachusetts, Indiana, and Wisconsin.
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