Colorado awarded $540K to replace outdated school buses

School buses parked in Helena, Mont., ahead of the beginning of the school year, Friday, Aug. 20, 2021. School districts across the country are coping with a shortage of bus drivers, a dilemma that comes even as they struggle to start a new school year during a new surge of the coronavirus pandemic. (AP Photo/Iris Samuels)

by: Nick Wills

Posted: Mar 7, 2022 / 06:43 PM MST

Updated: Mar 7, 2022 / 06:43 PM MST

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DENVER (KDVR) — The Environmental Protection Agency is taking steps to lower diesel emissions across the nation by ridding several school districts of 444 pollution-dispensing buses and replacing them with eco-friendly models.

According to an announcement from the EPA on Monday, they plan to divvy out $10 million across the country under the Diesel Emissions Reduction Act in an effort to improve children’s health, while at the same time, improving air quality in the regions receiving the federal rebates.

Of the 444 school buses to be replaced across the country, 27 are in Colorado. These outdated school buses will be swapped out with electric, diesel, gasoline, propane or compressed natural gas models designed to lower emissions. The Coloradan counties receiving this funding are Adams, Boulder, Otero and Weld, the total of which is expected to be $540,000.

“These clean buses will deliver healthier rides for hundreds of Colorado school children and reduce pollution in Front Range communities addressing ozone and other air quality challenges,” said KC Becker, the regional administrator of the EPA and the former speaker of the Colorado House of Representatives.

Funds awarded to each district

Adams 12 Five Star Schools: $200,000 for 10 new buses
Boulder Valley School District: $120,000 for six new buses
Cheraw School District 31: $20,000 for one new bus
Weld County School District 6: $200,000 for 10 new buses

This all comes out ahead of the EPA’s expected announcing of a new Clean School Bus program, which will invest $5 billion over the next five years into the replacing of the nation’s school buses with low- or zero-emission models.

Another effort recently introduced by the Biden administration and heralded by the EPA would clean up smoky diesel engines by cutting nitrogen oxide emissions by 90% by 2031.

Learn more about other rebate programs provided by the EPA by visiting their Diesel Emissions Reduction Act page.

More than 3,000 buses have been replaced since 2012 through rebate programs provided by the EPA.