Numbers in the News: Electric Buses

Diesel-powered school buses emit gases that pollute the air. That’s why many schools are switching to greener electric buses.

RVECTOR/SHUTTERSTOCK.COM

5.3 MILLION TONS PER YEAR

The average reduction in heat-trapping greenhouse gas emissions if all of America’s 485,000 school buses were replaced with electric ones

U-T SAN DIEGO/ZUMAPRESS.COM/ALAMY LIVE NEWS 

26 MILLION

The number of students in the U.S. who ride a bus to and from school each day

$110,000 VS. $400,000

The cost of a diesel bus compared to that of an electric bus 

ZMICIER KAVABATA/SHUTTERSTOCK.COM

1,000 MILES

The record distance an electric bus has been driven on a single charge

THINK ABOUT IT: List some of the pros and cons of switching to electric school buses. Should your school make this change? Why or why not?

SOURCES: ENVIRONMENT AMERICA RESEARCH & POLICY CENTER, U.S. PIRG EDUCATION FUND, AND FRONTIER GROUP

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