School District bus fleet going all-electric

With their distinctive blue bumper and logo, the first electric school buses joined the Sonoma Valley Unified School District fleet with a ribbon-cutting at the district office.

The move to an all-electric fleet, scheduled for completion by June 2020, is being performed in conjunction with the installation of SVUSD’s first microgrid at the District’s bus barn on Railroad Avenue, which will allow Sonoma Valley Unified to charge its buses regardless of whether PG&E is able to provide power. 

Each brand-new bus has a range of 120 miles, and is equipped with seat belts for student safety. 

“Sonoma Valley Unified runs because of the dedicated work of so many classified staff every day,” said Board President John Kelly. “We need to make sure they have the best possible tools available to meet the students’ needs, and upgrading our fleet with environmentally responsible buses equipped with state-of-the-art safety equipment is an important step in that direction.”

Kelly said the upgrade would not be possible “without the continued support of our voters, and their demonstration of their commitment to our schools through the support of 2016’s Measure E.”