TUFSD Revved up for unveiling of their all new Electric Bus

Tarrytown Union Free School District’s (TUFSD) Transportation department revealed their first electric bus on August 28, 2023. Representatives from the school district and the community spoke about the positive impact the electric vehicle will have on the environment before ecstatically cutting the ribbon.

“The electric bus is a welcome addition to our fleet. It marks change for our district and environment as we push for a cleaner, healthier future for our students and surrounding community,” said Dr. Raymond Sanchez, Superintendent of Tarrytown Union Free School District.

Karen Brown, Village of Tarrytown Mayor, attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony to show her support for the move towards electric vehicles and on ways to improve mobility by getting people out of their vehicles. “The villages of Tarrytown and Sleepy Hollow along with the school district, have applied for a grant together to fund a program called “safe streets and roads for all.” This federal grant would provide funding for projects to make our streets safer to walk and bike,” said Mayor Brown.

Talks of adding electric buses to TUFSD’s fleet came to light when Westch­ester County Ex­ec­u­tive George La­timer, the Coun­ty’s Of­fice of En­ergy and Sus­tain­abil­ity and the Westch­ester chap­ters of Mothers Out Front, co-hosted an elec­tric school bus fo­rum in January 2022. Mothers Out Front, is a national grassroots organization that is working toward a transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy.

Making the move from diesel to electric buses puts the district on the path to reducing emissions for a healthier future. Earlier this month NYSERDA released the Public School Bus Electrification Program draft eligibility guidelines, which they feel is an important step in ensuring students have an increased access to clean and healthy transportation in accordance with the State. The goal is for all new school bus purchases to be zero-emissions by 2027 and that all school buses on the road will be zero-emissions by 2035.

“Our intent is to be compliant with the State and to definitely be able to add more buses, with funding through grants as possible,” said Brian Fried, Assistant Superintendent for Business for the Tarrytown Union Free School District. The electric bus will hit the road starting this fall and with the hope of adding a second bus sometime in the near future. With the help of grants from the office of former State Assemblyman Thomas Abinati and NYSERDA, covering a third of the cost each, the district was able to afford the remaining balance.