Atlanta-area school district receives 90 propane buses

The Fulton County School System, near Atlanta, unveiled a fleet of 90 Blue Bird propane autogas-fueled school buses, equipped with three-point seat belts, according to Roush CleanTech.

The school district first announced plans to add the 90 autogas buses in January. This fleet addition marks the 10,000^th propane school bus manufactured by Georgia-based Blue Bird, Roush CleanTech reports.

“This propane bus purchase is a milestone for Fulton County Schools as well as for Blue Bird, as we celebrate our 10,000^th Blue Bird Vision propane bus in operation,” says Phil Horlock, president and CEO of Blue Bird. “These propane school buses run on clean fuel, reduce emissions transmitted into the air and keep our students even safer with our newest feature, the NextGen Blue Bird seat.”

At its transportation facilities in Alpharetta and Fairburn, Georgia, the Fulton County School System installed two propane stations to fuel the buses. AmeriGas, the school’s propane partner, installed two turnkey fueling stations at no upfront cost. The infrastructure costs were rolled into the school district’s price per gallon for propane, Roush CleanTech adds.

The 90 propane buses will begin operation in the 2017-18 school year. In addition, the stations’ fueling capabilities will also be able to handle the district’s plans to eventually convert its entire fleet of buses to propane, according to Roush CleanTech.

“Fulton County School is joining a growing trend of school districts in the region and across the country that are finding major benefits in operating propane school bus fleets,” says Tucker Perkins, president and CEO at the Propane Education & Research Council. “Over 740 school districts are transporting more than 770,000 students to and from school each day, a trend that is only going to increase as more districts learn how clean, quiet and cost effective it can be to fuel their school bus fleet with propane.”