Overview

It’s finally time to get your electric school buses on the road! 

You will need to finalize many of the same steps as for a fossil-fueled bus, such as getting insurance and completing inspections, but these might look slightly different for an electric school bus. 

You will also want to ensure that all your standard operating procedures, handbooks and safety protocols have been updated. For example, you may need to update your pre-trip inspection checklist or inform your towing company of the procedure for towing an electric school bus if you haven’t already.

Things to do:

• Develop pre-trip inspection checklist
• Review warranty procedures
• Complete standard bus commissioning procedures, such as numbering, obtaining permits and insurance, inspections, etc.
• Finalize route planning and driver training
• Deploy your electric school bus!

Questions to consider:

• Is the bus fully tested and ready to go?
• What legal and regulatory requirements must you comply with before the bus is on the road?
• Do you need to modify or create new standard operating procedures, or update bus driver handbooks or manuals?

Potential stakeholders:

• District transportation director
• District fleet manager
• District facilities manager
• District energy manager
• District dispatch staff
• School bus contractor (if applicable)
• Drivers and associated union representatives 
• Maintenance workers and associated union representatives
• Inspectors

Resources:

• Electrifying Transit: A Guidebook For Implementing Battery Electric Buses (Sections 3&4) — National Renewable Energy Laboratory: This comprehensive resource covers all elements of planning and implementing electric buses.