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School buses travel approximately four billion miles each year.

That is a lot of safe, reliable travel for kids. However, it’s also a lot of exhaust.

Making school buses better for the environment has been a goal of the EPA and innovative companies for years. Although new buses are held to higher emissions standards, plenty of older buses that are still in use miss that mark. The Diesel Emission Reduction Act (DERA) helps curb this issue by offering a rebate program. To date, more than 600 buses have been either replaced or retrofitted.

Emissions aren’t just an environmental issue. They’re also a school safety issue. To help spread the word, the EPA got creative by partnering with Scholastic to create a new book in a popular kids series called “The Magic School Bus Gets Clean Up.”

As we all look towards a future that offers kids both safe travel and cleaner air, several technological advances are important to remember.


Clean Diesel

Diesel used to be a dirty word.

However, a lot has changed in a short amount of time. Since 2006, diesel fuel has become 90% cleaner. In particular, Thomas Built diesel buses even exceed EPA and greenhouse gas standards for:

• Particulate matter

• Nitrogen oxide

• Carbon monoxide

• Non-methane hydrocarbon

A big reason for these improvements are technological advances, making diesel engine regens a thing of the past.

Despite its reputation, today’s clean diesel actually has a smaller carbon footprint over the lifetime of a bus compared to other fuels like gasoline and propane.

Electric Buses

Not all buses rely on fossil fuels.

The Saf-T-Liner® C2 Jouley™ is an electric bus with zero tailpipe emissions. It offers a range of up to 138 miles and it only takes a few hours for a nominal charge.

The future of school buses keeps getting better. By reducing emissions for each and every one of those four billion miles, kids everywhere can breathe better.

Whether you want to upgrade your fleet with new buses or used buses, Kerlin is the sales and leasing partner you need.