Recognizing the School District of Philadelphia for becoming the first Pennsylvania School District to acquire electric school buses.

WHEREAS, The School District of Philadelphia announced the acquisition of five electric school buses, which will be the first of their kind in Pennsylvania, for the 2021-2022 school year; and

WHEREAS, Through the District’s sustainability plan, GreenFutures, the Office of Transportation Services is committed to replacing its fleet of older diesel school buses with new technologies that focus on low emissions, improved fuel economy, and safety for students and drivers; and

WHEREAS, The District acquired the electric buses through the support of Diesel Emissions Reductions Act (DERA) and its commitment to continue expanding the electric bus fleet by purchasing five electric buses per year to replace older diesel buses; and

WHEREAS, The District has purchased the LionC buses from Lion Electric, North America’s leading manufacturer of zero-emission school buses, with nearly 400 vehicles on the road and seven million miles driven; and

WHEREAS, In addition to the direct procurement of electric buses, the School District is providing incentives to its contracted bus operators to also acquire zero emissions vehicles to further reduce greenhouse gas emissions, protect student health, and improve neighborhood pollution levels; and

WHEREAS, Replacing gasoline and diesel buses with electric buses addresses climate change, helps children’s health, decreases respiratory contaminants in the air, and ultimately improves overall community health while eliminating noise pollution; and

WHEREAS, Operating an electric school bus instead of a diesel school bus is the equivalent to removing 23 tons of greenhouse gases per year; and

WHEREAS, Electric school buses have fewer moving parts, making them much more affordable to operate, with approximately 60 percent less maintenance cost and 80 percent lower energy cost; and

WHEREAS, The transition to electric vehicles will allow the School District’s workforce to gain new skills in advanced automotive technology, a fast-growing field nationwide; and

WHEREAS, The Office of Transportation Services runs an apprenticeship program for career and technical education students, which will now include the opportunity to learn about electric vehicle maintenance, increasing the student’s marketability for future career paths; and

WHEREAS, The Biden Administration has proposed replacing 20 percent of the school bus fleet in the United States, converting approximately 100,000 units out of 500,000 total units, with electric buses as part of the American Jobs Plan; and

WHEREAS, Through this initiative, the School District of Philadelphia is demonstrating statewide leadership, a commitment to climate action and health equity, and financial sustainability; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, That Council does hereby recognize the School District of Philadelphia for becoming the first Pennsylvania School District to acquire electric school buses.

FURTHER RESOLVED, That an Engrossed copy of this resolution be presented to the Office of Transportation Services, further evidencing the sincere respect of this legislative body.

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