Electric school buses aren’t the only focus of the California Air Resources Board when it comes to getting students to and from class.
CARB announced Thursday it awarded $33 million to seven low-income communities to fund zero-emissions transportation and mobility options that can benefit schoolchildren. Electric school buses aren’t a part of any project, although the City of El Monte near Los Angeles is receiving over $6.5 million to purchase four electric shuttle buses to transport students and a charging station as well as to provide driver training.
Instead, the Clean Mobility in Schools and Sustainable Transportation Equity Project mostly targets electric car and bike sharing, and other bicycle and pedestrian programs such as Safe Routes to School.
Sacramento City Unified School District will use a $500,000 grant to conduct a needs assessment for its Safe Routes to School for All program. The project will include walking audits of 15 schools to assess transportation and safety barriers, as well as plan outreach and education events.
“Planning for a zero-emission future means helping Californians access essential everyday needs with clean and shared transportation options while reducing reliance on personal vehicles,” said CARB Chair Liane Randolph in a statement. “Through these clean mobility grants, we are helping communities bring their transportation ideas to fruition and addressing historic inequities in places that have been underserved by mobility options.”
Other winners are the cities of Hayward, Needles, San Diego, and several cities in the San Joaquin Valley.
The funding is part of the $48 billion California Climate Commitment, which includes over $10 billion to accelerate the ZEV transition and build charging infrastructure. Funding also comes from California Climate Investments, a statewide initiative using billions of Cap-and-Trade dollars.
So far, CARB says has allocated $265 million statewide to purchase electric school buses.
Related: Report Finds Challenges to California Vehicle Electrification Plans
Related: California Governor Signs Bill Requiring Zero-Emissions School Bus Purchases by 2035W
Related:Selling Carbon Credits a Growing Incentive For School Districts
