BARRIE, Ontario — In a show of support for the Government of Canada’s program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the transportation sector, Student Transportation of Canada (STC), a subsidiary of Student Transportation of America (TSX: STB), today announced that it has increased its fleet of “green” school buses seven-fold to more than 900 environmentally-friendly, biofuel vehicles operating throughout Ontario.
Biofuel, made from natural renewable resources such as soybean, corn and canola oils, is North America ‘s fastest growing alternative to diesel fuel, producing cleaner emissions and generating cost savings. By choosing a cleaner fuel alternative for its fleet, STC will provide a healthier environment for its young passengers, school bus drivers and the community at large.
Today’s STC news follows yesterday’s announcement that the Government of Canada, under Transport Canada ‘s Freight Technology Demonstration Fund, will help the freight transportation sector reduce the emission of greenhouse gas emissions and other air contaminants. The STC biofuel initiative is funded by the company.
“This biofuel expansion represents the successful implementation of STC’s strategy to reduce its carbon footprint throughout the Province, which increases long-term benefits to the environment and Ontario communities. STC is the biofuel leader in the province’s school bus industry – no one else comes close,” said Chris Harwood, senior vice president of operations for STC. “Realizing a 40 percent reduction in carbon dioxide emissions and reducing particulate emissions were both primary objectives for the conversion. Cleaner biofuel, along with the adoption of anti-idling policies and excellent driver training, have greatly reduced our children’s exposure to diesel particulates. Biofuel also reduces wear-and-tear on our engines, reducing maintenance costs.”
STC, which operates a family of local companies throughout Ontario, began its biofuel program in 2008 at Simcoe Coach Lines in Sutton and Parkview Transit in Caledon. Over the past 15 months, the program has been expanded to its other company locations in Peterborough, Guelph, Elmira, Breslau, Fergus, London, Thamesford, Embro and Woodstock.
“We are committed to remaining at the forefront of adopting more efficient, cleaner, renewable alternative fuel sources,” Harwood said.
About Student Transportation
Founded in 1997, Student Transportation is the fourth-largest provider of school bus transportation services in North America, conducting operations through local operating subsidiaries. Student Transportation has become a leading school bus transportation company by aggregating operations through the consolidation of existing providers and conversion of in-house operations and currently operates more than 6,300 school vehicles in North America. The company is publicly traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange – ticker symbol STB. For more information, please visit www.ridesta.com.
