Is an electric school bus on the horizon for Kewanee schools?
Maybe. But Supt. Dr. Chris Sullens told the school board Tuesday that while grant funds for electric buses and chargers are available, Kewanee might not qualify for the money.
There are two reasons: Kewanee’s buses are too new, and they run on gasoline instead of diesel fuel.
Sullens explained that the goal of the bus grant programs is to get old diesel-powered buses off the road. So the grants are for replacing diesel buses that are at least 10 years old.
That lets Kewanee out, for two reasons. First, the district has converted to all gasoline-powered buses. And second, none of the district’s buses are more than five years old.
Sullens said the district switched from diesel because of problems with running the buses in the winter. And they don’t keep a bus more than five years because after that the bus warranties expire — and the cost of bus repairs can be huge.
While the school board Tuesday authorized Sullens to go after grant funds for an electric bus, he said, “It may not happen. They may not loosen the rules up far enough for us to apply” for a grant.
Sullens said he’s been told by people in the school transportation industry that the rules for the grants may be changing, to allow for replacing newer, gasolene-powered buses with electric ones. But he added that it may be three years before Kewanee can apply for a grant.
“If they’ll give us a free bus, I’ll take it,” Sullens said, but he said he doubts the money will be available any time soon.
