First Student to Electrify 30,000 School Buses by 2035
Anaheim, Calif. – The ACT Expo, the world’s premier advanced clean transportation convention, revealed ambitious plans by First Student, a leading school bus contractor, to electrify 30,000 buses by 2035. During a recent panel discussion, President and CEO John Kenning outlined the company’s strategy to enhance technology solutions for safer and more efficient student transport across North America.
Key to this initiative is the First Charge, a proprietary charging infrastructure designed to be installed in less than 30 days. First Student has secured over $500 million in federal grants to support its electrification efforts and reported that its electric school buses have collectively traveled over 4 million miles.
Kenning spoke about the innovative trenchless solution developed by Chief Engineer Alex Cook, allowing buses to connect to charging networks without waiting for permanent installation. Additionally, the company is exploring vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technologies, collaborating with utilities like Con Edison to use school buses as energy storage.
Beyond electrification, First Student’s “Halo” system integrates multiple safety technologies, including parental tracking and AI-driven routing optimization, which has achieved a 17% reduction in preventable collisions.
Aiming to enhance student safety, First Student is also working with clients like Syracuse City Schools to implement stop-arm camera systems on their fleet of nearly 200 buses.
The panel also discussed the future of autonomous technology in commercial transportation, with Kenning noting a consensus among experts that full autonomy in school buses is not yet viable due to the need for constant monitoring of young passengers.
First Student’s commitment remains focused on ensuring student safety and advancing sustainable practices in school transportation.
Note: The image is for illustrative purposes only and is not the original image associated with the presented article. Due to copyright reasons, we are unable to use the original images. However, you can still enjoy the accurate and up-to-date content and information provided.
