Lenoir County — Lenoir County Schools on Monday introduced a new electric activity bus, making it the second of its kind in North Carolina to promote environmentally friendly transportation.
Funded by a grant from the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality, the $388,000 zero-emission bus comes with a $92,000 charging station.
Lenoir County Superintendent Brent Williams said the electric bus has a significant “cool factor” with students, who are eager to learn about it.
According to Transportation Director Cindy Bruner, the bus runs as quietly as a golf cart. For safety reasons, it is equipped with a noise maker so people can hear its sound. The sound stops when the bus speed exceeds 20 mph.
Carlos Lopez, bus driver and customer service trainer, highlighted the bus’s regenerative braking system, which makes it different from diesel buses. This system uses an electric motor to help slow the bus down, “and takes a little bit of the technology from airplanes where the engines move in the opposite direction,” Carlos said. The generated electricity is returned back to the bus battery to conserve energy.
Carlos, who has driven diesel buses for 25 years, also noted that the electric bus does not need oil changes and accelerates faster than its diesel counterparts. “If you get used to it and use it correctly, it will be a great tool to help extend battery life,” he said.
The bus can travel up to 150 miles on a single charge. It takes about 1 hour and 30 minutes to charge the battery from 20 percent to 80 percent. According to Electromaps, the only other charging station in Lenoir County is in Kinston.
School officials said they applied for the grant in 2022 and received the bus in the first round of grants. It took a year to build, and they expect the bus to be ready for students this summer. However, there are currently no plans to add more electric buses to the fleet.
(Tags for translation) Lenoir County
