The Anchorage School District recently purchased 12 new school buses that operate with diesel exhaust fluid and are equipped with safety features that include electronic stability control, reported KTUU.
Volkswagen grant funds partially fund the new school bus purchases. The district reportedly received $1.5 million from the state.
The new Type D transit-style buses operate with diesel exhaust fluid, which helps to improve the air quality, by filtering particulates from the engine before traveling through the exhaust pipe and exiting the vehicles. The district is also estimating savings of $50,000 on repairs, KTUU claimed.
On top of improving the air quality for students, the buses are coming equipped with safety features. All 12 buses have bright LED lights, higher seat backs, double stop arms and lighter flooring.
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The buses are also equipped with stability control from Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems, which the district said should help with inclement weather. Heather Philip, senior director of transportation at ASD, said the new technology will help maintain control of the bus during turns. It will also activate if the bus starts to swerve.
The district expects to have the new buses operational and on the road by next year.
