The Electric School Bus Series: How Austin's School Board Resolution Created a Path for Cleaner Rides for Kids

Austin ISD passed a resolution in September 2022 committing to purchase exclusively electric school buses by 2030 and achieve full fleet electrification by 2035. This transition is aligned with the city of Austin's goal of net-zero community-wide emissions by 2040 and is supported by a $2.4 billion 2022 Bond, which allocated $25.7 million for bus replacement. The district is initiating the transition with a pilot of three electric buses arriving in fall 2023 to test performance across various routes. Key challenges include the higher initial cost of electric buses, which are three to four times more expensive than diesel models, leading to potential funding gaps in initial bond estimates.

• The Austin ISD Board of Trustees passed a resolution in September 2022 to transition its fleet of 550 buses to electric by 2035, with specific purchase targets of 25% by 2023, 50% by 2027, and 100% by 2030.
• The transition is driven by a desire to align with the city of Austin's Climate Equity Plan, which targets net-zero community-wide emissions by 2040, and to improve student health by removing nitrous oxide (NOx) and particulate matter (PM) emissions.

APA

World Resources Institute (2023). The Electric School Bus Series: How Austin's School Board Resolution Created a Path for Cleaner Rides for Kids. https://www.wri.org/update/electric-school-bus-series-how-austins-school-board-resolution-created-path-cleaner-rides

Chicago

World Resources Institute. The Electric School Bus Series: How Austin's School Board Resolution Created a Path for Cleaner Rides for Kids. 2023. https://www.wri.org/update/electric-school-bus-series-how-austins-school-board-resolution-created-path-cleaner-rides.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Resources Institute |title=The Electric School Bus Series: How Austin's School Board Resolution Created a Path for Cleaner Rides for Kids |date=30 May 2023 |url=https://www.wri.org/update/electric-school-bus-series-how-austins-school-board-resolution-created-path-cleaner-rides |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldresourcesinstitute2023electric, author = {{World Resources Institute}}, title = {{The Electric School Bus Series: How Austin's School Board Resolution Created a Path for Cleaner Rides for Kids}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, year = {2023}, month = may, url = {https://www.wri.org/update/electric-school-bus-series-how-austins-school-board-resolution-created-path-cleaner-rides}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }