Ford just unveiled its first all-electric Type A school bus based on the E-Transit van. Announced at Work Truck Week 2023 in Indianapolis, Indiana, the van is the first from a “full line automaker” according to Ford. Incentives could make the zero-emission vehicle nearly free for many school districts too. The E-Transit is a big sales success for Ford. During 2022, it snatched up almost three-quarters of the entire EV van market and it did that by offering a number of different configurations and packages aimed at all sorts of businesses. Today, it’s showcasing the fact that it can expand even further into the realm of Type-A school buses.
Ford Pro’s Global Chief Marketing &
Experience Officer, Wanda Young, showed off the truck as it sits at the Ford
Pro booth at the show. According to the automaker, the E-Transit can save 57%
of the CO2 output when compared to gas-powered vans of the same sort. Adding a
school bus could help to cut emissions nationwide and increase Ford’s market
share. Ford hasn’t released pricing, production details, or range estimates for
the school bus package on the E-Transit. Nevertheless, it seems like a
no-brainer for many school districts since government incentives make
purchasing electric school buses nearly free.
School districts can get up to US$ 375,000 to
swap out their old diesel-powered buses for all-electric ones. On top of that,
the Inflation Reduction Act allows for another US$ 20,000 in credits for EV
charging infrastructure. We imagine that’ll be more than enough to pick up at
least a few E-Transit school buses.
The timing couldn’t be better either
because, in some places, governments are requiring school districts to make the
switch to electric buses in the near future. New York is committed to changing
over its entire fleet no later than 2035. Boston is already in the process of
kicking its old diesel and propane-powered buses to the curb with an estimated
completion date of 2030.
