Virginia State Leaders Announce Largest Zero-Emission School Bus Initiative in the Country

Herndon, VA -- Today Dominion Energy and Governor Northam announced a program that aims to replace 13,000 diesel school buses in Virginia with clean, electric buses. This includes 1,050 buses by 2025. Virginia has 133 school districts, which serve over 1.2 million students and 17,000 school buses in its total fleet.

Dirty, polluting, outdated school buses are impacting children’s health, increasing carbon emissions, and costing school districts to lose money over time. A switch to zero emission buses, which require no gasoline or diesel and emit no tailpipe pollution, presents a critical opportunity to slash pollution harmful to our health (especially vulnerable populations like children), reduce climate-disrupting greenhouse gases, reduce oil dependence, promote local jobs, and make our cities safer.

Highlights of the announcement:

• Dominion Energy’s goal (with state approval) is 1,050 electric buses online by 2025 and then aims to replace 13,000 diesel buses in Virginia with electric buses by 2030.
• Tom Farrell stated that this plan is the “Most aggressive far reaching proposal of its kind in the U.S.”

In response, Sierra Club Virginia Chapter Campaign and Policy Director Kelsey Crane released the following statement:

 “Creating the largest initiative for electric buses in the U.S. to date is a historic commitment that will improve public health and address the climate crisis. This investment in zero-emission vehicles puts Virginia on the path to having one of the cleanest and safest transportation systems in the country. Transportation fuels like gasoline and diesel are responsible for almost half of Virginia’s carbon pollution and greatly worsen the quality of the air we breathe. We commend state leaders for prioritizing the health of children and our communities by taking this important first step towards investing in a clean transportation future.”