Research Shows Alternative-Fuel School Bus Sales Are On The Rise

Propane Bus Tank

Alternative-fuel school bus sales are rising, however there is still plenty of room to grow according to recent research from School Bus Fleet.

Out of 37,663 school buses sold in the U.S. and Canada last year, 2,166 (5.8%) of those buses were powered by alternative-fuel. That may not sound like much, but that figure shows a significant increase from the past.

In the past two years alone, alternative-fuel school bus sales have more than doubled. In the 2012 sales year, School Bus Fleet found 2.5% of the total school buses sold were alternative-fuel buses.

As might be expected, propane is the most popular alternative fuel, with 1,820 propane school buses accounting for 84% of all alternative-fuel school bus sales. The remaining 16% were comprised of compressed natural gas (CNG) school buses, with 346 units sold.

It seems all but guaranteed we will continue to see growth in the number of alternative-fuel school buses, as they offer several benefits to the schools who include them in their fleet such as savings on both fuel and maintenance costs. However, with tight budgets being the norm for school districts across America, it will be up to each school to consider the benefits against their needs and abilities.