The Brooklyn community is on the brink of a transformative change, as the electrification of school buses promises to drastically reduce emissions, eliminate noise pollution, and lead the charge against climate change. Student transportation and electrification leader, First Student, along with Con Edison, one of the world's largest energy delivery systems serving New York City and Westchester County, are spearheading this electric revolution.
Through the launch of their innovative demonstration project, a smart energy hub will be deployed to support the speedy and cost-efficient electrification of school buses in the neighborhood. This groundbreaking project will deliver a scalable, cost-optimized solution that addresses economic barriers for medium and heavy-duty fleet electrification, showcasing how to achieve ambitious electrification goals and paving the way for a brighter, greener future.
This novel demonstration project will also include a fleet of 12 electric school buses for Brooklyn schools. The electric buses will be topped with solar panels and will replace diesel buses at First Student's location on Malta Street. The panels, along with solar arrays on the rooftop of the facility, will create a unique energy generation, battery storage and power delivery system.
The demonstration project positions Brooklyn at the core of a revolutionary approach to expand the capabilities of power grids in cities. This project has the potential to boost local grids while simultaneously storing and generating clean energy, and then delivering that power at moments when and where it is needed most. It is also a potential cost saver for rate payers. By using above-ground infrastructure, this approach eliminates the need for complex, expensive, construction-heavy projects and allows for quicker deployment speeds for future improvements.
For this project, First Student will deploy its innovative First Charge solution, a trenchless power deployment approach. First Charge reduces construction costs by at least 30% and enables a more efficient deployment, even in cold winter climates or where trenching would be disruptive to residents and businesses. This First Charge solution will also make it easier to upgrade the charging system for future deployments, adding flexibility and efficiency for vehicle electrification build outs.
The project surpasses traditional vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology, creating a new era of power sourcing: Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X). V2X goes beyond simply plugging electric school bus batteries back into the grid, expanding instead to include the capacity to direct electricity delivery where it is needed. In summer months, when the buses are idle, and energy needs soar, or during emergencies, the smart energy hub significantly increases capacity, generating additional power for Con Edison.
"Harnessing electricity from First Student electric school bus batteries to create an emissions free smart energy hub that can serve a community during peak demand while turbocharging America's fight against climate change is truly revolutionary," said First Student CEO and President John Kenning. "First Student's unparalleled battery storage capacity and pioneering First Charge technology solves an immediate need in many American communities: affordable, clean electricity supply that expands the capabilities of existing power grids. We do this all while providing a better experience for students by putting more electric buses on the roads, creating a safer, more enjoyable ride that's healthier for students and better for the environment."
The demonstration project in Brooklyn comes as school bus electrification gains momentum nationwide. First Student has approximately 2,000 electric school buses under contract in school districts across the U.S. and more than 360 EVs deployed. The company co-designed the system using several advanced charging technologies that can deliver megawatts of power instantaneously, enough to power 5,000 houses for a year to Brooklyn, New York.
"New York's children and families deserve clean air, which is why we are proud to partner with First Student to launch more electric school buses on our streets," said Britt Reichborn-Kjennerud, director, E-Mobility, Con Edison. "Con Edison will continue to make critical investments in clean energy so that every New Yorker can have a higher quality of life and thrive in communities free from the harmful impacts of pollution."
"EQT is proud of First Student's work toward accelerating the realization of a clean energy future," said Neha Jatar, Managing Director at EQT Group. "First Student's revolutionary approach toward harnessing advancements in grid technology for school transportation and applying them to other verticals is transformative. We are committed to investing in companies like First Student that are creating the technologies of tomorrow, today."
"Beyond providing healthy, clean transportation for kids, electric school buses represent an opportunity to build energy resilience in communities, which is critical in the face of natural and other emergencies," said Sue Gander, director of World Resources Institute's Electric School Bus Initiative. "By leveraging solar panels and integrated charging technologies, electric school buses can act as giant, mobile batteries, able to store and discharge clean power when not being used for transportation. We are eager to see this project between First Student and Con Edison bring stronger, more resilient grids, as well as a clean ride for kids, to Brooklyn and serve as an example for others."
This demonstration aims to prove how communities can build a critical bridge to planned grid modernization while providing backup power to grids. If needed, the Smart Energy Hub is also capable of supporting emergency services and hospitals, including HVAC, power and lighting.
The technology will allow for significant organizational growth at First Student, building upon the company's operations in 43 states and in partnership with more than 3,000 utilities. It will create new pathways for First Student to deliver more energy storage nationally.
"Our company leads the industry in moving students, and now we are showing the world how to move electrons. We' are proving that a scalable, cost-effective microgrid is possible, and doing it using bus batteries that otherwise would be sitting dormant," said Alex Cook, chief engineer, First Student. "We learned from successful trials in multiple other deployments that combine our innovative charging infrastructure solution with unique energy storage options and dynamic load management software that can deliver a microgrid that is reliable and puts money back into the communities we serve."
"We could not do this without great partners who value innovation and who, like us, prioritize students' well-being and their futures, which means safer rides to school and safeguarding our planet. We thank Con Edison and Bechtel for their commitment to this project and for seeing the potential safety, community and global benefits of using solar power and school bus batteries to do more than just transport children to and from school every day," said Kevin Matthews, head of electrification, First Student.
The implementation of this innovative charging technology is part of First Student's larger electrification goals. The company has made a commitment to transition 30,000 fossil fueled school buses to electric by 2035.
Watch an explainer video on this project.
About First Student
As North America's leading school transportation solutions provider, First Student strives to provide unmatched care and the safest ride to school to 5.5 million students every day. With a team of highly trained drivers, the company will complete 1 billion student trips during the 2024-25 school year. First Student delivers reliable, quality services, including full-service transportation and management, special needs transportation, fleet electrification, route optimization, scheduling, maintenance, and charter services with a fleet of nearly 45,000 buses.
About First Services
First Services, a division of First Student, is focused on providing customers with all of First Student's expert transportation services without a full-service transportation contract. Services provided include routing, maintenance, special needs training, and fleet electrification, including the deployment of First Charge, the containerized, above-ground modular charging solution that decreases costs and speeds up EV deployment.
About Con Edison
Con Edison is a subsidiary of Consolidated Edison, Inc. [NYSE: ED], one of the nation's largest investor-owned energy companies, with approximately $15 billion in annual revenues for the year-end 2023 and $68 billion in assets as of June 30, 2024. The utility delivers electricity, natural gas and steam, and serves 3.7 million customers in New York City and Westchester County. For financial, operations and customer service information, visit conEd.com.
Media Contact: Jen Biddinger, First Student, 513.362.4600
