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Blue Bird delivers first electric school bus fleet to Carter County Schools in Kentucky

February 05, 2024

Blue Bird Corporation is providing 23 electric school buses to Carter County Schools (CCS) in Kentucky.

The new Vision electric school buses from Blue Bird offer an extended range, faster battery charging, and increased seating capacity. The advanced Vision electric school bus features a high-capacity battery of 196kWh, which is a more than 25 percent capacity increase compared to the previous model. This battery allows a vehicle range of up to 130 miles on a single charge and supports a fast charging rate of 80kW, enabling it to fully recharge in just three hours.

The compact and lightweight batteries contribute to improved efficiency and a vehicle weight reduction of approximately 1,000 lbs. As a result, the seating capacity of the new Vision electric bus has been increased to 77 passengers, up from 72 passengers.

These zero-emission vehicles represent a significant step towards cleaner student transportation for the school district, which operates eleven schools serving approximately 4,200 students.

Upon completion of the latest Blue Bird bus delivery, CCS will maintain a bus fleet of nearly 75 vehicles. These buses travel more than 3,600 miles each school day, transporting up to 3,000 students to and from schools.

CCS received a $9,085,000 grant through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) 2022 Clean School Bus Rebate Program to purchase its Blue Bird electric school bus fleet. This program is part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) which provides a total of $5 billion over five years for clean school bus transportation nationwide.