Reno, Nevada is a dichotomy in July, where the sunbaked desert meets the lush Truckee Meadows, and fir and pine trees lead the way to the foothills of the Sierra Nevada. Temperatures easily reach triple digits, but strong afternoon winds rolling down the mountainside make evenings pleasant. It is also the scene of the annual STN EXPO West, which last month celebrated its 32nd year, and it has hosted many events and training activities over that span. This year, it brought a new element to the conference.
The National School Bus Inspection Training Program included a high-voltage electric school bus overview that identified key safety components when working on these vehicles. Thanks to Washoe County School District Transportation Director Scott Lee and his staff, Derek Bryant of Automotive Service Excellence utilized an electric Type D Blue Bird to show and discuss with 30 participants the intricacies of electric school bus maintenance and safety inspections. Bryant was joined by Jannet Malig of the Long Beach, California chapter of Clean Cities and the head of California’s Community College program that trains school districts on electric school bus maintenance.
The high-voltage training started the Saturday portion of the hands-on training at Washoe’s South transportation facility after a day of classroom exercises and a written exam. Providing an overview of ASE’s new accreditation for high-voltage safety, Bryant took participants through an electrical journey across the entire school bus, which was elevated on a mobile lift. The overview was about an hour and a half long, and thankfully the Reno heat cooperated as the aforementioned breeze came early.
High-voltage safety training is a must for school bus maintenance technicians nationwide, not only in nearby California, where electric school bus adoption is accelerated. This fact was hammered home several days after the EXPO concluded, when the new owner of Lion Bus formally notified U.S. customers their warranties are now void. This means some 2,000 electric school buses officially have no support. Any owner of a Lion electric bus will tell you that that service has been lacking for some time.
Earlier this year, STN reported some options available to U.S. school districts. More recently, the World Resources Institute’s Electric School Bus Initiative and CALSTART announced they are working to provide more resources to Lion customers.
The situation highlights a legitimate concern about new entrants into the electric school bus segment, whether that be the vehicle itself, chargers and infrastructure, or service. Already, several companies have fallen by the wayside. With the exit of Lion from the U.S. market, student transportation leaders must ensure the provider they select will be there tomorrow. Certainly, Blue Bird, IC Bus and Thomas Built Buses are in for the long haul. BYD spinoff Ride has a legacy that goes back to 2013, about the same as Lion, but BYD holds the distinction of being the largest electric vehicles manufacturer in the world.
Meanwhile, the feeding frenzy on $5 billion from the EPA Clean School Bus Program appears to have subsided, though EPA finally broke its silence last month with an update on the rebate process as well as promising more information on future funding. There will likely be changes, such as more money for propane school buses. Still, with over 5,200 electric school buses on the road—and another 14,000 in the pipeline, according to the World Resource Institute’s Electric School Bus Initiative—maintenance professionals must receive training and assistance. That includes warranty work.
Electric school buses aren’t going anywhere. All the OEMs have spent considerable time and money in developing their low- and zero-emissions products. No amount of uncertainty from Washington, D.C., changes that. I believe electric school buses, will ultimately be successful in specific areas and on routes where the vehicles make the most sense—and other fuels will be necessary for years to come to make up the difference. And technicians in these school districts will need to provide maintenance.
With electric school buses, there are no oil changes, no fuel filter replacements and in many cases no transmission work. But as highlighted by ASE’s high-voltage accreditation, and the work being done elsewhere, it is critical school districts and bus companies have well trained professionals on staff able to take an educated approach to maintaining them. There is nothing contradictory about that.
Editor’s Note: As reprinted from the August 2025 issue of School Transportation News.
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