GreenPower Launches Next Round of All-Electric School Bus Pilot Project in Four New School Districts

February 28, 2023

GreenPower Motor Company Release

Upshur County Schools

L-R: Upshur County Schools Melinda Stewart, Interim Assistant Superintendent; Stephanie Bennett, Transportation Supervisor; Jeffrey Perkins, Business Manager; Rick Wentz, Chief Mechanic and GreenPower Motor Vice President Mark Nestlen.

SOUTH CHARLESTON, WV - GreenPower, a leading manufacturer and distributor of purpose-built, all-electric, zero-emission medium and heavy-duty vehicles serving the cargo and delivery market, shuttle and transit space and school bus sector, today announced the launch of Round 4 of its pilot project to demonstrate all-electric school buses in Mineral, Lewis, Harrison and Upshur County school districts in West Virginia.

Three all-electric GreenPower Type D BEAST school buses will be deployed in Mineral, Lewis and Harrison school districts, while Upshur County will deploy the award-winning, all-electric Type A Nano BEAST on March 3rd.

This round of the pilot project will continue to evaluate the performance of the buses on rural roads, in mountainous conditions and in cooler temperatures.

The round will also continue to assess charging options by including systems provided by S&B USA eMobility and Francis Energy in Lewis and Upshur counties. This infrastructure utilizes a state-of-the-art Level 2 charger that far exceeds the necessary charging rates for successful operations.

Similar charging rates are typically available only with DC Fast Charge infrastructure, at a serious price premium. The chargers come packaged with an industry-changing operations management software that will allow fleet operators to remotely inspect, troubleshoot, reset and track both their chargers and vehicles to ensure operational excellence and eliminate unnecessary downtime.

"GreenPower's BEAST and Nano BEAST continue to prove their capabilities in colder weather conditions and mountainous terrain and we look forward to launching Round 4 of our pilot project with Mineral, Lewis, Harrison and Upshur counties and gathering valuable data," said GreenPower CEO and Chairman Fraser Atkinson.

"We're committed to continue bringing healthier transportation alternatives to the children and communities of West Virginia to help reshape how students travel to and from school," he said.

Round 4 of the pilot program will focus on districts with mountainous roads and cooler conditions. The data collected from each of the pilot program rounds continue to prove an electric bus is just as capable as an ICE bus on the same roads in the same conditions. A GreenPower bus was recently approved for purchase by Kanawha County Public Schools which was a participant in the first round of the pilot program.

"We are excited to see the positive impressions the BEAST left on Kanawha County after the school district purchased the first electric school bus in the state following their participation in the pilot program," continued Atkinson.

GreenPower will continue to support school districts transitioning to all-electric buses through installing the proper charging infrastructure and the necessary training for each county's first responders, mechanics and school bus drivers.