(Radio Iowa) – The Logan-Magnolia school district is among 12 statewide to receive federal funding to purchase electric school buses. Superintendent Tom Ridder says they will buy five E-V buses to replace half of the district’s entire fleet to save on fuel. The longest bus route in the western Iowa district is 100 miles – which he says E-V buses will easily cover with charges in between runs.  “We run the morning route, plug it in, and then when that route’s done plug them in at 5:00, 5:30, whenever they get back. And then it will be fully charged for the next day,” Ridder says. He says the buses will sound different –but will look familiar to students and drivers.

“They are regular buses. The only thing different is they don’t have diesel engines. They have battery engines,” he says. Ridder says the buses shouldn’t take any adjustment for drivers.  “All the buses are brand new — all will have seat belts in them. So, the bus drivers I don’t think are going to have a problem with them because it’s like driving a regular school bus,” Ridder says. Ridder says federal rebates will likely cover the full cost of purchasing the buses, but the district must pay to install chargers.

The program was funded through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law passed last year. More than 11 million dollars was awarded to Iowa schools to purchase a total of 30 E-V buses. Logan-Magnolia can receive up to two million dollars for the new electric-powered buses.

(reporting by Grant Gerlock, Iowa Public Radio)