Electric vehicles are often billed as an eco-friendly solution to the world’s problems, but it appears they’re hiding a dirty secret. In this case, it’s high levels of particulates near EV charging stations.

The surprising finding was discovered by researchers from the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, who took readings at 50 DC fast charging stations and compared them to other sites. They were interested in potentially dangerous air particles known as PM2.5, which are about 30 times smaller than a human hair.

More: EVs Pollute 30% Less Than ICE Over Lifetime, But Only After 56K Miles

In Los Angeles, the study found the urban background PM2.5 concentration is 7 to 8 micrograms per cubic meter and that increases to around 10 to 11 on freeways or at busy intersections. Gas stations clocked in at around 12 micrograms per cubic meter, while fast chargers averaged 15 and peaked as high as 200.

UCLA

Researchers noted the highest levels were found at the chargers’ power cabinets, but concentrations dropped “quite a bit” just a few meters away. They added that “a few hundred meters away, there’s no noticeable difference compared to background levels of pollution.”

Dr. Yuan Yao said, “Our findings suggest that these tiny particles likely come from particle resuspension around the DCFC’s power cabinets.” She went on to explain the cabinets convert electricity from the grid into the direct current needed to charge electric vehicles, and they also contain fans to prevent them from overheating. It’s believed these fans are stirring up dust and particles, making air around charging stations ‘dirty.’

UCLA

Dr. Michael Jerrett explained the dangers as he said, “These particles are so small, they can travel deep into your lungs and even enter your bloodstream – potentially leading to serious problems like heart or lung disease.” Unsurprisingly, those with pre-existing conditions or heightened sensitivity are at higher risk of suffering health issues related to fine particle exposure.

Despite the risks, UCLA environmental health professor Yifang Zhu said “EVs remain a vast improvement over combustion vehicles, and our own studies show that transportation electrification cleans the air for everyone.” She went on to suggest the charger emissions could be addressed by adding air filters to the power cabinets.

In the meantime, researchers suggest that EV drivers remain inside their vehicle with the climate control system running, while it charges. As an alternative, they can leave the area to get to cleaner air.

H/T to Bloomberg

UCLA

Earlier this year, the Federal Highway Administration effectively paused the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program. At the time, state transportation directors were told the Trump administration had “decided to review the policies underlying the implementation of the NEVI” program and its guidance would be updated to better align with their latest priorities.

Many people feared that would mean disastrous things for the $5 billion program, which was part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. However, the Trump administration is now reluctantly moving ahead with plans to support electric vehicle charging.

More: Trump Administration Hits Pause On EV Charger Funding

The Department of Transportation unveiled revised guidance for the program, which they claimed will “streamline applications, provide states with more flexibility, and slash red tape left by the Biden-Buttigieg Administration.” The Trump administration went on to claim their predecessors “wasted time, money, and public trust in implementing the program.”

Fewer requirements, more flexibility

Political mudslinging aside, the government said the changes minimize the content necessary in state plans, while also simplifying their approval process. States can also expect more flexibility to determine the appropriate distance between charging stations.

DOE DC fast charger map

While it’s hard to argue with those updates, the government also noted the changes eliminate “requirements for states to address consumer protections, emergency evacuation plans, environmental siting, resilience and terrain considerations.”

This sounds like a terrible idea as a lack of charging stations on emergency evacuation routes could be a matter of life or death. However, the government said states “should … address emergency and evacuation needs, snow removal and seasonal needs, and ways for EV charging to support those needs.”

A quick deadline ahead

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said, “While I don’t agree with subsidizing green energy, we will respect Congress’ will and make sure this program uses federal resources efficiently.” He added, “Our revised NEVI guidance slashes red tape and makes it easier for states to efficiently build out this infrastructure.”

With the updated guidance released, the clock starts ticking as the government said states should submit their EV Infrastructure Deployment Plans within 30 days. That’s a quick turnaround and one that could prove bumpy.

Compared with their predecessors from a decade ago, today’s EVs go further, charge faster and have far more charging stations to choose from, but some would-be buyers still cite range anxiety as a reason for not going electric. And the results of a new study investigating the real range of EVs currently on sale suggests those fears are entirely justifiable.

The Australian Automobile Association (AAA) picked five EVs from a mix of brands as part of its government-funded four-year test designed to arm the nation’s car buyers with honest data. After subjecting each of the electric cars to a real-world driving route it found one of models delivered 23 percent less range than its maker claims.

Related: After 100K Miles, VW’s EV Barely Lost Range Thanks To One Trick

That car, the BYD Atto 3, only achieved 229 miles (369 km) before needing a recharge, representing a 69-mile (111 km) shortfall on the Chinese automaker’s 298-mile (480 km) official figure. Tesla’s Model 3 didn’t tell quite so big a lie, but it also failed to live up to its official range figures by a fairly large margin considering the tests weren’t carried out in the Arctic. The 274 miles (441 km) it achieved was 14 percent lower than Tesla’s 319-mile (513 km) claim.

Inconsistent Accuracy

But the big takeaway from the investigation isn’t that all EV range claims are wildly inaccurate. All five cars delivered fewer miles than advertized, and the BYD was wildly off. But one of the cars very nearly matched its official range, falling just 5 percent short, and it’s this difference across the brands, and cross models within the same brand, that’s the real problem for consumers.

If they knew that every car over-promised by 20 percent, it would be easier to make buying decisions than it is when you’ve no idea which brands to believe. It’s for this reason that these kind of independent tests are so useful for buyers looking at spending tens of thousands of dollars on a new car.

Standout Performer

The AAA’s test champ was the Smart #3, whose 268-mile (432 km) true range was only 14 miles (23 km) out. Kia’s EV6 and the Tesla Model Y also performed relatively well, each returning 8 percent less range than claimed.

AAA

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) warns blackouts could increase by 100 times in 2030 if the nation “continues to shutter reliable power sources and fails to add additional firm capacity.” The forecast is a driving factor for school transportation departments seeking to incorporate cleaner alternatives for fueling buses.

The DOE report “Evaluating U.S. Grid Reliability and Security” released July 7, fulfills Section 3(b) of President Donald Trump’s Executive Order “Strengthening The Reliability and Security of the United States Electric Grid,” designed to deliver a uniform methodology to identify at-risk regions and guide federal reliability interventions.

• • The report finds the current path—retiring more generations without dependable replacements—threatens both grid reliability and the ability to meet growing AI-driven energy demand. Without intervention, the bulk power system cannot support AI growth, maintain reliability, or keep energy affordable.
  • Projected load growth is too large and fast for existing grid management and capacity planning methods to handle. A transformative shift is urgently needed.
  • The retirement of 104 giga-watts (GW) of firm capacity by 2030, without one-to-one replacement, worsens the resource adequacy challenge. Loss of this generation could cause major outages during unfavorable weather for wind and solar.
  • While 209 GW of new generation is projected by 2030, only 22 GW would be firm baseload power. Even without retirements, the model found increased risk of outages in 2030 by a factor of 34.
  • Current methods for assessing resource adequacy are outdated. Modern evaluations must consider not just peak demand, but also the frequency, magnitude and duration of outages, and model increasing interdependence with neighboring grids.

“Though demands on the electric grid are increasing, we do not foresee a meaningful logistics problem for school transportation directors,” noted Michelle Levinson, the World Resources Institute’s senior manager of eMobility Finance and Policy. “The report headline averages numbers across the whole of the U.S. The risk of additional outages is low and is brought up by high assumed data center demand in Electric Reliability Council of Texas and in PJM South (Virginia and Maryland).”

Levinson commented that the most recent data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration indicates electricity customers on average experienced approximately 5.5 hours of electricity interruptions in 2022.

“Even if all these outages occur on school days, which is unlikely, outages would account for only 0.19 percent of the hours when a bus is in the yard and potentially charging,” she added. “Luckily, transportation directors are already accustomed to navigating the impacts of electric outages on their fueling capabilities through their experience with liquid fossil fuel pumps, which also needs electricity to function.”

Levinson acknowledged change can be “scary” and the transition to electric school buses requires a shift in logistics but should not be a problem in and of itself and as with all logistics comes down to planning.

Overnight and midday down times of most school buses offer substantial opportunities for directors to charge batteries in advance of any conditions that might indicate higher grid risks, such as extreme weather events, she added.

However, others warn that even a short outage will greatly disrupt transportation operations. The DOE’s predicted blackout rate “introduces serious questions about how to keep buses moving in the face of growing grid instability,” noted Joel Stutheit, senior manager of autogas business development at the Propane Education & Research Council (PERC).

“The school day is built around a routine,” he continued. “Imagine what happens to that routine if the grid goes down as often as this DOE report suggests. If a transportation director is relying on an electric school bus fleet, blackouts could leave them unable to charge buses and reliably transport students. Even a short-term outage could introduce last-minute scheduling changes, rerouting [of] buses, and adding extra pressure on drivers and operations teams.”

Transportation directors need to shift from thinking about the electric grid as a guarantee to thinking about it as a variable for which they must plan, Stutheit said.

Ewan Pritchard, the chief subject matter expert on school bus electrification for consultant Energetics, said he believes the intent of the report was to make electric vehicles look bad.

“The DOE’s report is politically charged,” he shared. “My company is the evaluator for the electric vehicle infrastructure program for the state of California. My team is collecting data from all the vehicle charging stations across the state of California that are put in by the electric utilities. We track the time of usage of all of those stations, and we issue a report annually on the progress.”

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Related: EPA Proposal Seeks to Eliminate GHG Regulations for Vehicles, Engines
Related: EPA Provides Update on Clean School Bus Program
Related: Previous Lion Electric School Bus Warranties Voided by Company Sale
Related: Propane School Buses Save Districts 50% on Total Cost of Ownership
Related: Roundup: Informative Green Bus Summit Held at STN EXPO West

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The team’s work, he said, demonstrates electric school buses can benefit the utility grid — a shoring-up effect in the sense that it depends on when a school bus is plugged in.

For example, it can be a problem if school districts charge electric vehicles between 4 p.m. to 9 p.m., actively drawing power from the utility grid during peak demand times when usage and prices are highest, he noted.

Instead, Pritchard recommended school transportation departments would do well to use charge management systems, which essentially keep track of the strain on the utility grid, the cost of electricity and carbon production.

Doing so saves districts money, he added.

“We’re seeing tremendous change in the way people are charging vehicles, especially when it comes to school buses, because school buses have a very predictable schedule,” Pritchard said. “There’s plenty of time between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m. to recharge their vehicles.”

A Back Up Plan?

The challenge of student safety is “likely not as extreme as the report makes it seem,” Levinson agreed.

“If operators have not charged their vehicles ahead of a significant outage event, battery capacities may be low or zero, meaning this particular type of transport would not be able to run its typical route,” she pointed out. “School may not be in session in the event of such a significant outage.”

Alternatively, schools districts may find that electric buses can provide an additional level of safety and resiliency for students and communities during extreme events when the larger grid is out, Levinson said.

“Localized microgrid capabilities that connect bi-directional buses and essential school or community facilities are especially relevant in situations where extreme weather conditions isolate people and businesses,” she added.

PERC’s Stutheit, who previously was the director of transportation for Bethel School District in Washington, noted students are immediately impacted if buses can’t operate due to a power outage as “many students rely on transportation to and from school not only for their education, but to access meals and other essential services.”

If the grid goes down due to severe weather, the stakes are even higher for transportation directors to provide evacuations or emergency transportation, Stutheit said, adding student transporters need reliably-powered school buses that can respond quickly to keep students safe.

“Propane autogas buses provide that layer of resiliency,” he argued. “These buses can operate and refuel even when the grid is down. In the event of an emergency evacuation or shelter-in-place situation, propane autogas buses allow districts to respond without waiting on fuel deliveries or power restoration. That kind of reliability supports student safety.”

Pritchard noted most schools have backup generators if power goes out. He said the real student safety issue is when the tailpipe of a combustion vehicle is putting out emissions at that student’s height, adding studies show the concentration of pollutants inside of a vehicle are worse than the concentration outside of a vehicle when it comes to school buses.

“I think it’s more of a student safety issue to not electrify your fleet,” he added.

And then there is the possibility of using electric school buses to power microgrids available to provide surplus power to school buildings.

Getting Smart

To mitigate challenges, school districts should implement smart charging strategies and familiarize themselves with charge management tools and capabilities, Levinson said, adding it is best to charge when the grid is least constrained, such as overnight or midday when there is the most solar production.

“School districts can also create standard operating procedures and emergency management procedures. They can also conduct emergency preparedness drills to practice for such scenarios and identify places for procedural improvements,” she added.

Other steps include identifying additional charging locations beyond the primary charging yard and installing site-level resilience via batteries, solar and/or generators.

Stutheit shared that propane also complements EVs as part of a multi-fuel strategy, as it can be go-to energy in emergency situations when the grid is down. It can also provide transportation directors with an affordable option that won’t need infrastructure updates to keep up with grid instability.

There are ways to lessen the risk from outages that apply to both diesel and electric school buses, involving alternative power from outside the grid, Levinson said, adding grid outages affect all functions, not just charging buses.

“In cases in which electric school buses are vehicle-to-load or vehicle-to-building capable, they can be a potential asset to provide site power to run phones, computers, and HVAC systems during an outage. Increasingly electric vehicles, such as electric school buses, can be part of the grid support solution.”

The post Safety Concerns of the Electric Grid? appeared first on School Transportation News.

CAMPBELL, Calif., – ChargePoint (NYSE: CHPT), a leading provider of EV charging solutions, today announced Safeguard Care, a new service offering that provides end-to-end reliability monitoring of ChargePoint charging stations. The program, available now in six launch markets, utilizes a network of trained service providers to routinely inspect chargers, identifying and repairing many common issues while onsite.

“ChargePoint continues to develop innovative solutions that ensure EV charger reliability, from anti-vandalism measures to monitoring our hardware from our network operations center. Safeguard Care further demonstrates our commitment to delivering a reliable charging experience,” said JD Singh, Chief Customer Experience Officer of ChargePoint. “As the original manufacturer of the chargers, we are able to ensure the highest standards of service and support. With Safeguard Care, we are giving station owners and EV drivers peace of mind knowing that chargers will be in pristine working order.”

Safeguard Care, combined with ChargePoint AssureÒ, is an ideal solution for charging providers with high traffic and distributed charging stations, such as municipalities, parking garages and workplaces. It is particularly beneficial for station owners who do not have their own dedicated staff to inspect and maintain their stations on a regular basis. Each Safeguard Care visit includes a visual inspection of the charging station and the physical area around the chargers, cleaning, minor repairs or adjustments if necessary, and a test charge to validate functionality after the completion of repairs. Any issues the Safeguard Care inspector cannot address on site will be escalated directly to ChargePoint support for follow up.

For more information about Safeguard Care, please visit: https://www.chargepoint.com/businesses/services.

About ChargePoint Holdings, Inc
ChargePoint has established itself as the leader in electric vehicle (EV) charging innovation since its inception in 2007, long before EVs became widely available. The company provides comprehensive solutions tailored to the entire EV ecosystem, from the grid to the dashboard of the vehicle. The company serves EV drivers, charging station owners, vehicle manufacturers, and similar types of stakeholders. With a commitment to accessibility and reliability, ChargePoint’s extensive portfolio of software, hardware, and services ensures a seamless charging experience for drivers across North America and Europe. ChargePoint empowers every driver in need of charging access, connecting them to over 1.25 million charging ports worldwide. ChargePoint has facilitated the powering of more than 16 billion electric miles, underscoring its dedication to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and electrifying the future of transportation. For further information, please visit the ChargePoint pressroom or the ChargePoint Investor Relations site. For media inquiries, contact the ChargePoint press office.

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The Lucid Gravity is the brand’s white knight, but the Air is rolling into 2026 with a handful of updates. The biggest is access to the Tesla Supercharger network, although you’d have to be dumb or desperate to use it.

While that sounds odd, let us explain. Starting on July 31, Air owners can use a $220 NACS adapter to gain access to more than 23,500 Tesla Superchargers. That seems fantastic, but the Air is only capable of charging at speeds up to 50 kW. This means it could take up to an hour to gain 200 miles (322 km) of range.

More: Lucid Air Drivers Will Soon Be Passengers In Their Own Cars

That’s ridiculous for a ‘fast charger’ and you’d be far better off using a traditional CCS charging station. Depending on the trim, the Air supports a DC CCS fast charging capability of up to 300 kW and that’s six times higher than at a Tesla Supercharger.

Despite being terrible, Lucid’s Emad Dlala claimed “Access to the Tesla Supercharging network … is yet another major milestone.” However, if there are other alternatives, you should avoid Superchargers like the plague.

Besides Supercharger access, the 2026 Air Pure comes with an improved air conditioning compressor from the Gravity. It promises improved cooling as well as quieter operation.

Buyers will also find a newly standard Lucid Mobile Charging Cable Kit and optional 19-inch Aeronaut wheels, which are available in Platinum or Stealth. The Comfort and Convenience Package has also been updated to include a rear center console display and storage bin.

The $79,900 Air Touring builds on that and features higher density battery cells. They help to increase the EPA-estimated range over 6% to 431 miles (694 km).

Last but not least, the Air Grand Touring now comes standard with 20-way power front seats with heating, ventilation, and massage functions. Lucid said they “make road trips in the industry’s longest range electric vehicle, at up to 512 miles (824 km) of EPA-estimated range, even more comfortable and relaxing.”

2026 Lucid Air Pricing

Honda and Acura electric vehicle drivers now have a significantly broader charging network at their disposal. The Prologue and ZDX crossovers can officially plug into Tesla’s Supercharger network across North America, thanks to a newly approved adapter.

Both models continue to use the CCS (Combined Charging System) port but are now compatible with Tesla’s NACS (North American Charging Standard) through this accessory, which is available for $225.

More: Sales Of Honda’s Only American EV Soar 963%

The company says that the approved adapter has been “tested for performance and compatibility” with the Prologue and ZDX, ensuring a “reliable charging experience”. While aftermarket solutions are available, Honda says that “damage caused to a vehicle resulting from the use of an unapproved adapter may not be covered under vehicles’ limited warranties”.

The official NACS adapter is currently on sale through authorized Honda and Acura dealerships, as well as via the Honda DreamShop website, all priced at $225.

Initially, Honda and Acura EV owners will have to log into the Tesla app to use a Tesla Supercharger, but the automaker has promised future integration with the HondaLink and Acura EV applications. Furthermore, the standard Google built-in Maps on the infotainment allows owners to locate Tesla Superchargers.

Honda

As of June 2025, the company has sold 49,334 units of the Honda Prologue and 17,726 units of the Acura ZDX in the US market, meaning that the news affects a pool of 67,060 EV owners. Both electric crossovers were developed in collaboration with GM.

More: Honda Pulls Plug On Key Electric SUV For US Market

The first Honda models equipped with a North American Charging Standard (NCAS) port will be the production versions of the 0 Series sedan and SUV, scheduled to reach dealers in 2026.

The deal between Honda and Tesla was first announced in 2023, following a similar move by several other automakers. The Tesla Supercharger network now includes more than 23,500 locations across the United States. By 2030, Honda and Acura EV owners are expected to have access to roughly 100,000 DC fast chargers throughout North America, spanning multiple charging networks.

Honda

For many drivers curious about switching to electric vehicles, battery longevity remains one of the most common sticking points. Despite new EVs all coming with long battery warranties, concerns about range degradation still put some potential buyers off. A recent long-term study involving a Volkswagen EV, however, suggests those fears may be less grounded than expected.

More: EV Batteries May Last Up To 40% Longer Than Expected

In test carried out by the ADAC, Germany’s equivalent to America’s AAA and the UK’s AA, a VW ID.3’s electric range had hardly changed after four years and 107,000 miles (172,000 km). The Golf-sized hatchback lost just eight miles (13 km) of range over the course of the experiment.

Real-World Battery Health After 100K+ Miles

At the outset of the test the ID.3 Pro S Tour’s 77 kWh battery delivered 272 miles (438 km) of real-world range against a claimed 326 WLTP miles (525 km). Four years laterm it was still capable of travelling 264 true miles (425 km) before needing to stop at a charging station.

And it’s not like the ADAC team treated it with kid gloves. Against automaker advice, which suggests never charging to 100 percent unless necessary so as to help prolong the battery’s lifespan, the drivers almost always charged it to full, and often left the car parked with the battery fully charged, another supposed no-no.

Independent battery checks carried out through the course of the test showed that the battery was at 96 percent after 13,500 miles (21,800 km) when the first measurement was taken, had dropped to 94 percent at 52,400 miles (84,300 km), and was still holding on to 91 percent of its capacity at 105,500 miles (169,700 km). VW’s warranty only kicks in if the battery health falls below 70 percent.

A Software Update With Real Benefits

And best of all, the EV’s efficiency actually improved over that time. At the outset it was returning 3.11 mi/kWh (20 kWh per 100 km), but by the end of the test it could achieve 3.4 mi/kWh (18.3 kWh per 100 km). The secret behind those gains was a software update the ID.3 received, which helped makes the reduction in range far less severe than it would have been otherwise for the same amount of battery degradation.

“The result shows the impressive quality of our ID. models even after covering many kilometres,” said Martin Sander, Member of the Volkswagen Board of Management for Sales, Marketing, and After Sales. “A high battery capacity of over 90 per cent after 172,000 kilometres confirms that our ID. models are also very attractive as used cars and continue to meet the requirements of our customers.”

Another big win related to charging speed. Before the update ADAC’s ID.3 charged at 125 kW, but after it was inhaling 160 kW, cutting two minutes from the 10-80 percent charge time. The message is clear: don’t put off EV software updates the way you do phone ones, and don’t stress over buying a used VW EV.

In a year marked by significant economic uncertainty, we have observed a first half in which reactions to the common shift in the...

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Unless your daily commute involves chasing down a Cannonball Run record, chances are you’re not rolling around with a 70-gallon (265-liter) fuel cell in your car. Most of us don’t need to knock out 1,860 miles (3,000 km) in one uninterrupted stretch. But according to Huawei , that kind of range might soon be possible in an electric vehicle.

The Chinese tech giant claims its new battery technology could enable a future mid-size EV to cover that distance on a single charge.

Related: BYD’s New 1,000 kW EVs Fill Up As Fast As Gas Cars

Like Toyota, VW, BMW, Stellantis and other big players in the tech and automotive space, Huawei has spent the last few years working on solid state batteries, which most experts agree will bring a step-change in EV usability. And this month Huawei filed a Chinese patent for solid-state battery chemistry that comes with some bold claims.

The cells, whose sulfide electrodes are doped with nitrogen to reduce lifespan-shortening side reactions, have an energy density of 400-500 Wh/kg, the filing says, or triple the figure for current conventional cells. Huawei reckons that would allow a typical midsize sedan to cover 1,860 miles on a single charge. Oh, and that charge – to full, not 80 percent – would  take just five minutes.

The 1,860-mile figure would be based on China’s hopelessly optimistic CLTC calculations, so would probably translate to a 1,300-mile (2,090 km) EPA number. Slightly less spectacular, sure, but still around three times what the rangiest 2025 EVs can deliver on a single charge.

It all sounds incredible, but I have some reservations about it actually happening, and not because I doubt Huawei’s tech. No one buying an EV is going to need to travel that far between charges, especially if that EV can be charged in less than five minutes (being able to do that depends on having the infrastructure, but there’s no doubt that will come). And automakers won’t want to build one, anyway, since associated costs will be, at least at first, quite high.

Even in a future where we can sleep while our car does the driving, we’re still going to need bathroom breaks and to stretch our legs with a quick stroll to keep the DVT at bay. And making an EV with an unnecessarily long range means making an unnecessarily heavy and expensive EV because batteries are heavy and expensive, though Huawei expects prices and weights to fall. As TG notes, even with the clever cells, an 1,860-mile EV would still need a battery pack that weighed as much as a Mitsubishi Mirage.

What’s far more likely is that automakers will use the tech to put smaller, cheaper batteries in their cars that still deliver plenty of range – say 600 miles (1,000 km) – but make those cars lighter, and so more efficient, and also less expensive to build and buy. When automakers can deliver an EV that costs less than a gas car, goes further in one hit and refuels faster, electric cars will really take off, infrastructure willing.

Toyota has already talked of its future EVs having a 750-mile (1,200 km) range and that sounds like more than enough to us. What do you think the optimum range is for a family-sized electric car?

Source: Car News China

The Trump administration has suffered another blow, this time from a U.S. District Judge in Washington. She ordered the government to release billions in funding for new electric vehicle charging stations.

In a lengthy ruling, which started off with a reference to a Simpsons episode, the judge noted Congress appropriated $5 billion to fund a National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure program to “strategically deploy electric vehicle charging infrastructure and to establish an interconnected network to facilitate data collection, access, and reliability.”

Despite the ruling, several states argued the Trump administration and his Secretary of Transportation decided they “would disregard Congress’s mandate.”

More: Trump Administration Hits Pause On EV Charger Funding

As part of this effort, the Federal Highway Administration rescinded its administrative guidance on the program, revoked state deployment plans, and stopped distributing funds. Sixteen states and the District of Columbia cried foul as the program was approved by Congress during the Biden administration.

They argued the move “represented an unlawful seizure of legislative authority under the separation-of-powers doctrine enshrined in the United States Constitution and an overextension of executive authority beyond what is permitted by law.”

While that’s the gist of the argument, Judge Tana Lin sided with Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, and Wisconsin. As a result, she ordered a preliminary injunction that prevents the government from suspending or revoking any previously-approved electric vehicle infrastructure deployment plans from the aforementioned states.

The government also can’t withhold previously approved funding. However, the injunction was stayed and won’t go into effect until July 2. That being said, if the government appeals, the injunction won’t take place.

What happens next remains to be seen, but ABC News noted the Trump administration argued that the program was simply paused until new guidance was developed. Regardless, the delays and lawsuits will likely continue to slow the growth of America’s charging network.

White House

ANAHEIM, Calif. — What was considered “plug and play” solution years ago, that being fleet electrification, is far more complicated. OEMs, vendors and transportation leaders are highlighting the continued challenges but also the benefits of electric school buses while also promoting collaboration as the industry enters uncharted territory. But continued funding is necessary.

Brad Beauchamp, EV product segment leader for Blue Bird, moderated a related session, “School Bus Sector: Rolling out the New Generation of School Buses,” on April 30 at the Advanced Clean Transportation (ACT) Expo that provided the perspectives of two student transporters, a leader of electrification at the nation’s largest school bus contractor, a mechanical engineer, and a smart charging technology provider.

Mike Bullman, director of transportation for the South Carolina Department of Education. described the uniqueness of The Palmetto State, as the DOE owns and maintains all 5,600-plus school buses. Bullman noted the fleet fuel makeup is currently 88 percent diesel, 10 percent propane, and three-and-a-half percent electric. He noted that his operation has taken a multi-pronged approach to alternative fuels with a focus on advancing technology.

He added that the South Carolina state specifications committee will be convening in the this summer, and gasoline will be on the agenda as well. “We feel that fleet diversity is very important as we certainly move into the future,” he said.

The South Carolina fleet travels 78 million miles a year and supports 77 public school districts. Those 78 million miles serve 365,000 students a day using about nine or 10 million gallons of diesel fuel annually and 1.2 million gallons of propane. There are 42 statewide school bus maintenance facilities and a staff of about 375 employees, with an annual budget of $170 million.

“It’s quite a large endeavor,” Bullman shared.

In addition to fuels, Bullman is focused on technology adoption. “We take a safety-first approach, but we want to make sure that technology is in there,” he said, adding that buses have tire pressure monitoring systems, stability control, camera systems, stop arm cameras, student management, GPS tracking. “All of that is part of this comprehensive multi-prong approach,” he added.

He noted that preventative and predictive maintenance are also important. Bullman and his team in South Carolina lead the inspection program offered at STN EXPO conferences.

Bullman’s department also has a statewide routing program and a comprehensive driver training program. “Additional investments in charging and fueling infrastructure is on our list and important to us, long cycle cost analysis for vehicle procurement, and staff training,” he said.

He added that South Carolina will continue to seek additional funding sources, noting that was the main driver for purchasing electric vehicles. In 2021, the state received $1.3 million in grant money to purchase four electric school busses and in 2022 received $6.6 million to purchase 16 EVs and then in 2024 they got another $6.9 million to purchase another 20.

He added that with the EVs, they are seeing cost savings with maintenance and operating costs, it’s the initial cost gap that needs to be bridged. “I personally and professionally believe that the school bus space is an ideal space for an electric vehicle,” he said. “It just fits. You’ve got long dwell times. You’ve got repeatable routes. Certainly, 80 to 90 percent of the routes in South Carolina can be covered quite comfortably with an EV bus.”

Bullman cited the current challenge is uncertainty surrounding federal funding for ESBs — which many in the industry would agree with. He noted that without grants, South Carolina would not have been able to purchase electric, citing the cost gap with diesel. He noted that data collecting will be key and help to convince naysayers that this is the right technology moving forward.

Sam Hill-Cristol, director of strategy and business development for The Mobility House, noted that V2G technology is a way to offset some of those costs. “We’re optimistic about the contributions that V2G revenues can make in the total cost of ownership calculation,” he said.

He noted that while there are ongoing V2G projects across the U.S., it is currently not scalable. He expects V2G to gain more popularity in the years to come.

Meanwhile, Lauren Lynch, senior mechanical engineer with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), noted that the agency focuses on energy systems research and development with an eye on data collection. She said NREL provides data to fleets of school buses to enable fleet managers who are adopting the technologies to better understand their use and performance.

She said the fully funded program is a free service to fleets right now. Going forward, she explained that NREL will provide buses with a data logger that works in conjunction with telematics systems, so it won’t interfere with other data logging taking place on the bus. The data is transferred to NREL, who stores the data and conducts an analysis. Currently, they are working with seven different fleets and aim to collect data for at least 30 days. NREL is also hoping to capture a year after year performance and is coming up on year two working with Beaverton School District near Portland, Oregon.

“It’s been exciting, and we’re expanding our analysis to include a maintenance and cost study,” she shared. “We want to ensure that we provide a value back to the fleets. So, as part of our overall objective, we not only want to provide this analysis to the fleets, where we highlight key insights or maybe identify some areas of opportunity, but we also hope to utilize the data as an aggregated study for the vocation, utilize the data and other tools and models to inform driver developments or address any barriers within the industry.”

She explained that the data shows electric buses are more efficient than other powertrains. They do, she confirmed, have higher capital costs but have resulted in an overall lower dollar-per-mile cost when operating the same routes.

“We’re looking at all powertrains within the fleet to understand the performance of each and identifying areas of opportunity and what’s going well,” she explained, adding that the end-goal is to make the electric school bus data publicly available via the online tool FleetREDI. Currently, the website has data on heavy- and medium-duty findings.

San Marcos Unified School District in California also received about $30 million in grant funds for infrastructure and school buses. “It was very overwhelming,” Executive Director of Transportation Mike Sawyer said.

He noted that the district had 84 old diesel buses, so he started applying for grants — one of them being the Carl Moyer Memorial Air Quality Standards Attainment Program grant in California and the Zero Emission School Bus and Infrastructure Program — and the money kept flowing.

To help him navigate all the funding, he said he reached out to partners, including Engie, which helped San Marcos find inefficiencies in charging infrastructure. Engie helped San Marcos create “one of the biggest” charging infrastructure bus yards. Phase one was completed with 40 EV chargers, six of which are 120 kW, the remainder being 30 kW chargers. Phase two, which is about to break ground, will bring the district to a total of 75 chargers.

The location holds about one megawatt of solar and 1.5 megawatts of battery storage, and it includes a 60kW diesel generator to serve as backup if the power goes out. Sawyer noted SMUSD currently has 33 electric buses on the road.

Providing a Service

Meanwhile, First Student operates over 45,000 school buses across 43 states and eight Canadian provinces. Of those, 450 are electric vehicles.

“EVs, they are providing not only cleaner and quieter rides to school, but these kids are arriving to school calmer,” said Jennifer Harp, the contractor’s vice president of the electric vehicles program, discussing a recent project in rural Westville, Illinois that electrified its entire fleet of 17 school buses with help from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Clean School Bus Program, IRA tax credits, and the Illinois Volkswagen Environmental Mitigation Trust program.

“They had some limited resources,” she said, adding that they were on a lease property and needed an infrastructure solution that would avoid high costs.

She added the company integrated its First Charge, a trenchless, flexible and quick-to-deploy. purpose-built charging hub with that removes the barrier of having to trench locations.

Harp also noted First Student currently deploys 14 First Charge units. It took about nine months to deploy the one operating in Westville.

“If we want to follow Westville’s playbook for electrification success, we really need to remember that continued success in this space requires continued funding incentives from all of our government sectors,” she said. “It also requires that we minimize costly infrastructure as much as possible. Requires partnerships and a willingness to share those learnings. …With the right strategy and infrastructure, school bus electrification is not only possible, it is absolutely practical.”

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She noted the conversations on battery-electric adoption at ACT Expo have evolved from the initial belief that it could be a plug-and-play option. “If you’ve been here long enough, you know that it’s not that simple,” she shared. “Fleet electrification takes partnerships, very strong partnerships, high increased project coordination, industry standardization, and, above all else, patience.”

Meanwhile, The Mobility House provides smart charging to fleets to over 2,500 sites globally, 100 of which are location in North America. Hill-Cristol shared that the grand vision is to achieve “zero emission transportation at zero cost,” he said. “We think we can get there in some cases, through the technology that we provide.”

He explained that vehicle grid integration is an umbrella term The Mobility House uses to talk about a suite of use cases that are becoming more common with the next-generation electric school bus projects.

“The days of going to the utility, getting a totally new service, 100 percent paid for, putting in enough capacity for every charger to be on at once, and then just turning it on and not worrying, I think those days are pretty much behind us,” he said, adding that now customers are looking for ways to solve challenges, like vehicle-to-grid, charging off peak and backup power integration.

Hill-Cristol also mentioned off-grid supplemental solutions, which consists of using solar storage or a backup generator to help with capacity challenges and the delay in receiving chargers. All of this is also provided by The Mobility House.

He elaborated that the off-grid solutions can be either a long-term or temporary solution. For instance, some districts are using it as a bridge as they wait for their infrastructure, whereas some districts can solely use it as a charge management system. Other use cases include a micro-gird if districts need additional power on site.

“Depending on where you fall on that spectrum, and the investment that you’re making, I think that would lead you to the conclusion of whether this is a two-to-five-year solution or whether this is going to be something that sticks around,” he said. “Because with the right combination of technologies, you’re also going to get operational cost saving.”

The post Funding, Data and Resiliency Needed for Electric School Bus Success appeared first on School Transportation News.

New Poll: American Voters Support Federal Investments in Electric Vehicles Broad, Bipartisan Support for EV Investments and Incentives that Lower Costs, Expand Access, and Help the U.S. Beat China in the Race for Auto Manufacturing WASHINGTON, D.C. – A new bipartisan national poll conducted by Meeting Street Insights and Hart Research finds broad public support …

The post Support for Electric Vehicles appeared first on Alternative Energy HQ.

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