EcoWatch
Facebook 568k Twitter 233k Instagram 41k Subscribe Subscribe
  • Climate
  • Energy
  • Conservation
  • Food + Agriculture
  • Renewables
  • Oceans
  • Policy
  • Insights + Opinion
  • Go Solar Today
      • Top Companies By State
        • California Solar Companies
        • Texas Solar Companies
        • New York Solar Companies
        • Florida Solar Companies
        • See All States
      • Top Incentives By State
        • California Solar Incentives
        • Texas Solar Incentives
        • New York Solar Incentives
        • Florida Solar Incentives
        • See All States
      • Solar Panel Costs By State
        • Solar Panel Costs in California
        • Solar Panel Costs in Texas
        • Solar Panel Costs in New York
        • Solar Panel Costs in Florida
        • See All States
      • Value of Solar by State
        • Is Solar Worth It In California?
        • Is Solar Worth It in Texas?
        • Is Solar Worth It New York?
        • Is Solar Worth It In Florida?
        • See All States
      • Company Reviews
        • Tesla Solar Review
        • Sunrun Solar Review
        • SunPower Solar Review
        • Vivint Solar Review
        • See All Companies
      • Common Solar Questions
        • Can You Get Free Solar Panels?
        • Does Solar Increase Home Value?
        • What’re The Best Solar Batteries?
        • Can You Finance Solar?
        • Where To Buy Solar Panels?
        • Payback On Solar Panels?
      • Solar Resources
        • Interactive Solar Calculator
        • Federal Solar Tax Credit 2023
        • Best Solar Panels For Most Homes
        • Tesla Solar Roof Review
        • Cheapest Solar Panels
      • Companies Compared
        • SunPower vs Tesla Solar
        • SunRun vs Tesla Solar
        • SunRun vs SunPower
        • SunPower vs Momentum Solar
        • SunPower vs ADT Solar
EcoWatch
  • Climate
  • Energy
  • Conservation
  • Food + Agriculture
  • Renewables
  • Oceans
  • Policy
  • Insights + Opinion
  • Go Solar Today
    • Go Solar Today
    • Top Companies By State
      • California Solar Companies
      • Texas Solar Companies
      • New York Solar Companies
      • Florida Solar Companies
      • See All States
    • Top Incentives By State
      • California Solar Incentives
      • Texas Solar Incentives
      • New York Solar Incentives
      • Florida Solar Incentives
      • See All States
    • Solar Panel Costs By State
      • Solar Panel Costs in California
      • Solar Panel Costs in Texas
      • Solar Panel Costs in New York
      • Solar Panel Costs in Florida
      • See All States
    • Value of Solar by State
      • Is Solar Worth It In California?
      • Is Solar Worth It in Texas?
      • Is Solar Worth It New York?
      • Is Solar Worth It In Florida?
      • See All States
    • Company Reviews
      • Tesla Solar Review
      • Sunrun Solar Review
      • SunPower Solar Review
      • Vivint Solar Review
      • See All Companies
    • Common Solar Questions
      • Can You Get Free Solar Panels?
      • Does Solar Increase Home Value?
      • What’re The Best Solar Batteries?
      • Can You Finance Solar?
      • Where To Buy Solar Panels?
      • Payback On Solar Panels?
    • Solar Resources
      • Interactive Solar Calculator
      • Federal Solar Tax Credit 2023
      • Best Solar Panels For Most Homes
      • Tesla Solar Roof Review
      • Cheapest Solar Panels
    • Companies Compared
      • SunPower vs Tesla Solar
      • SunRun vs Tesla Solar
      • SunRun vs SunPower
      • SunPower vs Momentum Solar
      • SunPower vs ADT Solar

The best of EcoWatch right in your inbox. Sign up for our email newsletter!

    • About EcoWatch
    • Contact EcoWatch
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Learn About Solar Energy
    Facebook 568k Twitter 233k Instagram 41k
    EcoWatch
    • About EcoWatch
    • Contact EcoWatch
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Learn About Solar Energy
    Facebook 568k Twitter 233k Instagram 41k
    Home Renewable Energy

    Oakland School District Transitions to 100% Electric Bus Fleet

    By: Paige Bennett
    Published: May 17, 2024
    Edited by Chris McDermott
    Facebook icon Twitter icon Pinterest icon Email icon
    The Oakland Unified School District in California has partnered with Zūm, a school transportation services company, to transition to a fleet of 74 entirely electric buses
    The Oakland Unified School District in California has partnered with Zūm, a school transportation services company, to transition to a fleet of 74 entirely electric buses. Zūm
    Why you can trust us

    Founded in 2005 as an Ohio-based environmental newspaper, EcoWatch is a digital platform dedicated to publishing quality, science-based content on environmental issues, causes, and solutions.

    Facebook icon Twitter icon Pinterest icon Email icon

    The Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) in the Bay Area of California is set to fully transition its school bus fleet to electric buses. With this move, it is expected to become the first big school district in the U.S. to switch to 100% electric buses with vehicle-to-grid (V2G) capabilities.

    The school district has partnered with Zūm, a school transportation services company, to acquire a fleet of 74 entirely electric buses. In addition, the school district will receive bidirectional chargers, which can not only charge the buses but send stored or excess energy from the vehicles back to the grid.

    This means the fleet of electric buses and chargers will double as a virtual power plant (VPP). Zūm reported the OUSD fleet VPP is expected to send 2.1 gigawatt hours (GWh) per year back to the grid, which will save about 25,000 tons of emissions.

    “Oakland becoming the first in the nation to have a 100% electric school bus fleet is a huge win for the Oakland community and the nation as a whole,” said Kim Raney, executive director of transportation at Oakland Unified School District, as reported by Smart Energy International. “The families of Oakland are disproportionately disadvantaged and affected by high rates of asthma and exposure to air pollution from diesel fuels. Providing our students with cleaner and quieter transportation on electric school buses will be a game changer ensuring they have an equitable and stronger chance of success in the classroom.”

    OUSD and Zūm are collaborating with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) via its Clean School Bus program, California Air Resource Board via the Heavy Vehicle Incentive Program, the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, Clean Mobility Operations programs and Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) to electrify OUSD’s fleet.

    According to the California Air Resources Board, OUSD’s fleet transports 1,300 students to and from school each day. Soon, students will be able to ride emissions-free, electric buses in an area vulnerable to poor air quality. A recent American Lung Association report found that Alameda County is one of the most polluted counties to live in the U.S.; Oakland is located in Alameda County.

    Countrywide, student transportation has more than 500,000 school buses, with 90% of these buses using fossil fuels for power. This contributes 8.4 million tons of emissions per year, Zūm reported.

    More From EcoWatch
    • What Is a Solar Carport?
    • The Best Solar Panels for RVs
    • California Solar Incentives, Rebates & Tax Credits

    Zūm has set a target to help electrify 10,000 buses in the U.S. and plans to work toward electrifying the larger transportation fleets for San Francisco Unified School District and Los Angeles Unified School District, Electrek reported.

    “We at Zūm strongly believe it is time to move beyond pilots and deploy sustainability solutions at scale. Converting the Oakland Unified school bus fleet to 100% electric with VPP capability is the right step in that direction,” Ritu Narayan, founder and CEO of Zūm, said in a statement. “This historic milestone is a win-win proposition: Electric school buses with V2G provide students with cleaner, fume-free transportation and allow us to send untapped energy from the bus batteries back to the grid, creating an enormous impact on grid resilience.”

    View this post on Instagram

    A post shared by Zūm (@ridezum)

    Subscribe to get exclusive updates in our daily newsletter!

      By signing up, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy & to receive electronic communications from EcoWatch Media Group, which may include marketing promotions, advertisements and sponsored content.

      Paige Bennett

      Based in Los Angeles, Paige is a writer who is passionate about sustainability. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in Journalism from Ohio University and holds a certificate in Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies. She also specialized in sustainable agriculture while pursuing her undergraduate degree.
      Facebook icon Twitter icon Pinterest icon Email icon

      Read More

      A ‘Surprisingly Good’ Beer Made With Wastewater 
      Xylem, a water technology company, has developed a Bavarian-style beer
      By Paige Bennett
      Half of Pasture Lands on Earth Degraded by Climate Change and Overuse, Threatening Food Supply of Billions: UN Report
      The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) has found
      By Cristen Hemingway Jaynes
      Climate Change Costs the World 12% in GDP Losses for Every 1°C of Warming, Report Says
      A new report on the macroeconomic effects of climate change
      By Paige Bennett

      Subscribe to get exclusive updates in our daily newsletter!

        By signing up, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy & to receive electronic communications from EcoWatch Media Group, which may include marketing promotions, advertisements and sponsored content.

        Latest Articles

        • NASA Launches Satellite to Predict Climate Change by Studying Earth’s Poles
          by Cristen Hemingway Jaynes
          May 27, 2024
        • Mexico Braces for Its ‘Highest Temperatures Ever Recorded’
          by Cristen Hemingway Jaynes
          May 24, 2024
        • WWF Sues Norway Over Approval of Deep-Sea Mining in Arctic Waters
          by Cristen Hemingway Jaynes
          May 24, 2024
        • A ‘Surprisingly Good’ Beer Made With Wastewater 
          by Paige Bennett
          May 24, 2024
        • Alaska Youth on the ‘Front Lines of the Climate Crisis’ Sue to Stop LNG Pipeline
          by Cristen Hemingway Jaynes
          May 23, 2024
        • The Next Great Human Migration: Abrahm Lustgarten on America’s Future Climate
          by Craig Thompson
          May 23, 2024
        • NOAA Predicts 8 to 13 Atlantic Hurricanes for 2024
          by Cristen Hemingway Jaynes
          May 23, 2024
        • Half of Global Mangroves Are at Risk of Collapsing, IUCN Warns
          by Paige Bennett
          May 23, 2024
        EcoWatch

        The best of EcoWatch right in your inbox. Sign up for our email newsletter!

          • Climate Climate
          • Animals Animals
          • Health + Wellness Health + Wellness
          • Insights + Opinion Insights + Opinion
          • Adventure Adventure
          • Oceans Oceans
          • Business Business
          • Solar Solar
          • About EcoWatch
          • Contact EcoWatch
          • EcoWatch Reviews
          • Terms of Use
          • Privacy Policy
          • Learn About Solar Energy
          • Learn About Deregulated Energy
          • EcoWatch UK
          Follow Us
          Facebook 568k
          Twitter 233k
          Instagram 41k
          Subscribe Subscribe

          Experts for a healthier planet and life.

          Mentioned by:
          Learn more
          • Privacy Policy
          • Terms of Use
          • Cookie Preferences
          • Do Not Sell My Information
          © 2024 EcoWatch. All Rights Reserved.