With only a handful of school buses on the road that meet 2010 EPA requirements for lower diesel emissions, the industry can begin to brace for mandated fuel economy improvements.
President Obama signed a memo on May 21 directing the EPA and NHTSA to begin working on new rulemaking under the Clean Air Act and the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 to make medium- and heavy-duty trucks and buses, and hence school buses, more fuel efficient for all 2014 through 2018 model years. The rule would also go toward reducing greenhouse gas emissions and, of course, reduce the dependence on foreign oil.
The rulemaking will consider the findings of a National Academy of Sciences report that was released in late March that made fuel assumptions for tractor trailers, Class 6 box trucks, Class 6 bucket trucks, refuse trucks, transit buses, motorcoaches, and pickup/vans. It also set forth technologies, and associated costs, for reducing fuel consumption by 15 to 21 percent in diesel engines alone, both current technologies and ones under development. In all, the report says that buses could realize total fuel savings of 48 percent by also improving vehicle weight, transmission and the rolling resistance of tires and wheels, as well as incorporating hybrid technology.
But those numbers are attributed to “transit buses” with a potential dollars per gallon savings of $48 per year. You’ll notice there’s no mention of school buses, so likely the industry will have to extrapolate from this report what it will all mean to manufacturers and operators. But motorcoaches are addressed, and the figures are 32 percent total fuel savings and a per gallon expenditure reduction of $11.60 per year.
The administration said last month that it hopes to issue the final rule by next July. By then, the school transportation industry will also likely have begun truly feeling the effects of further increased vehicle costs tied to the current EPA regulations that cut emissions of NOx to minuscule levels. Over the past five years, the price of new school buses have increased by some $25,000 tied to changes made to engines to make them more environmentally friendly.
The regulations have certainly worked in one regard, removing the traditional smoke-spewing yellow bus from the nation’s roads. Today’s school buses are the cleanest ever, and the industry has largely paid out of its own pocket to realize this. Meanwhile, transit and the heavy-duty trucking industry have seen large subsidies as they represent the lion’s share of federal grants such as CMAQ and DERA. School buses can compete, but it hasn’t been easy.
Surely, the industry will make its views known over the coming year as the public comment and review process takes shape.
