Texas Commission on Environmental Quality offering to reimburse public schools that upgrade or replace diesel-powered buses [Video]

Hundreds of Texas public school districts will likely qualify for state funding as they switch to electric buses and other clean forms of transportation.

Districts can request reimbursement as they upgrade or replace diesel-powered buses. Roughly $13.5 million is available through the grant program, which is administered by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.

The details

Everyone benefits when schools transition to cleaner transportation, TCEQ Program Specialist Nate Hickman said.

“The new school buses certainly have little to zero exhaust … so the air in and around the school buses are cleaner,” Hickman said. “That’s great for the children, the bus drivers, teachers at the school and the administration, but also the immediate communities (that) buses drive in and around.”

Districts can choose to upgrade existing diesel buses to limit emissions or purchase new diesel, propane, and electric-powered vehicles. Buses must have been built before 2007 to be eligible for replacement, according to the TCEQ.

“The engines that …