On Jan. 9, FCPS was one of two Virginia school systems to be selected as the recipient of a federal grant worth
over $16 million to purchase 42 electric school buses.
The grant significantly aids FCPS’s goal to provide a completely carbon-neutral student transportation system by 2035.
FCPS and Newport News Public Schools were awarded the federally funded grant by The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as a result of both school systems winning The Clean School Bus Program’s Grants
Competition. The grant also provides Newport News Public Schools $525,000 towards electric school buses.
According to FCPS’s website, FCPS currently has 8 electric school buses in operation, transferring over 141,000
students to school every day and planned to implement 10 more electric school buses in 2022. This grant allows FCPS to more than double their current amount of electric buses in use.
The EPA program was created under the Biden Administration’s Investing in America Agenda and the passing of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) which became effective Nov. 15, 2021.
The law provides funding to aid school systems with better school buses that are more environmentally friendly, better efficient and impose better air quality.
