Canadian Electric School Bus Alliance

FAQs

• Who is a member of CESBA?

  CESBA is coordinated by Green Communities Canada, with the support of Équiterre and under the direction of a committee made up of a number of Canadian non-profit organizations involved in the electrification of school transportation.

  Including its steering committee, CESBA has more than 40 member organizations across Canada. They come from a variety of sectors, including research, education, health, the environment and advocacy.

  To ensure the independence of CESBA, organizations offering private services related to electric school buses are not eligible for membership.
  

• What is the scope of CESBA's activities?

  CESBA is targeting Canada as a whole, with a particular focus on provinces that have very few electric school buses and where the gains from such a transition would be greatest: Ontario, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia.

  CESBA is working on three fronts. The first involves mobilizing and raising awareness among stakeholders involved in the electrification of school transport. This includes holding meetings with members, organizing events and creating educational content.

  The second part involves developing research, particularly into the social and environmental justice issues associated with electric school buses. Two research reports are planned for the period 2024-2026.

  Government relations is the final component of CESBA. This includes meetings with elected officials and civil servants at federal and provincial levels, and the development of policy recommendations to accelerate the transition to electric school buses.
  

• Why work on electrifying school buses rather than promoting active transport for children?

  Although active transport is not at the forefront of CESBA's work, our vision is based on the ‘RTI’ approach: reducing the distance and frequency of journeys, transferring to more sustainable modes of transport (such as walking and cycling) and, finally, improving the impact of transport activities (such as electrification).

  In fact, our strategy and actions are based on a series of five principles, one of which is to support initiatives that improve air quality and the health of people using school transport, as well as promoting active transport for children. But since it is not always possible to walk or cycle to school for a variety of reasons, the school bus remains the second-best travel option.

  It is in this context that CESBA is working to limit the negative impact of this mode of transport on the environment and health through its electrification. Few organizations are working to promote the electrification of school transport in Canada, while many are already looking at the issue of active school transport.
  

• What is the environmental impact of manufacturing electric school buses?

  Lifecycle analysis studies of electric vehicles (EVs), such as electric school buses (ESBs), indicate that the greater impacts during the manufacture of EVs are minimal compared with those avoided by petrol and diesel, which are not produced or burnt.

  In the case of ESBs, several factors help to reduce the environmental impact of their manufacturing. Firstly, the majority of ESBs circulating across the country are manufactured in Canada, which reduces the GHG emissions associated with transporting the vehicles.

  Secondly, when ESBs reach the end of their life and since there is a strong demand for batteries, those ESB batteries can be put to other uses or recycled, which reduces the demand for new batteries.

  Finally, although this is not yet a well-developed sector in Canada, there are companies that specialize in converting diesel buses into electric models, which reduces the manufacturing footprint of ESBs (excluding the battery).