The State of Electric School Bus Adoption in the US

As of December 2021, 1,828 electric school buses were committed across 36 US states, representing a 57% increase since June 2021. California is the primary leader in adoption, holding nearly half of all commitments. While adoption correlates with high median household income, it is more evenly distributed across different poverty levels. The report notes that the vast majority of the US school bus fleet (95%) still relies on diesel, and that the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act has allocated $5 billion over five years to accelerate the transition to lower-emission buses.

• As of December 2021, there were 1,828 committed electric school buses (ESBs) in the United States, which is a 57% increase from June 2021. These commitments involve 354 school districts or private fleet operators across 36 states.
• California is the leading state for ESB adoption, with 792 committed buses, which is nearly half of the total US commitments and more than the next four leading states (Maryland, Florida, New York, and Virginia) combined.
• The vast majority of the US school bus fleet consists of nearly half a million vehicles, 95% of which run on diesel. This results in indoor air pollution levels up to 12 times higher than ambient levels, disproportionately affecting children from low-income communities and children of color.
• ESB adoption shows a strong correlation with high median household income, but is distributed more evenly across school districts with varying poverty levels. When excluding California, a small fraction of ESBs are located in the most vulnerable areas according to the CDC’s Social Vulnerability Index.
• The majority of committed ESBs are located in suburban school districts (57%), though this is a decrease from 64% in June 2021. Urban districts have a higher transition rate than rural districts, though a quarter of rural ESBs are in California via the CARB Rural School Bus Pilot Project.
• The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act enacted in November 2021 provides $5 billion over five years for electric and lower-emission school buses, with the EPA's Clean School Bus Program allocating $500 million annually specifically for ESBs.

APA

Lazer, L., & Freehafer, L. (2021). The State of Electric School Bus Adoption in the US. World Resources Institute. https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/2023-04/electric-school-bus-adoption-insights-feb-22.pdf

Chicago

Lazer, Leah, and Lydia Freehafer. The State of Electric School Bus Adoption in the US. World Resources Institute, 2021. https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/2023-04/electric-school-bus-adoption-insights-feb-22.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Lazer |first1=Leah |last2=Freehafer |first2=Lydia |title=The State of Electric School Bus Adoption in the US |publisher=World Resources Institute |date=5 August 2021 |url=https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/2023-04/electric-school-bus-adoption-insights-feb-22.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{lazer2021state, author = {Lazer, Leah and Freehafer, Lydia}, title = {{The State of Electric School Bus Adoption in the US}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, year = {2021}, month = aug, url = {https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/2023-04/electric-school-bus-adoption-insights-feb-22.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }