New York Electric School Bus Pilot Completes in Mid-September 2026

New York City's first electric school bus pilot project for 10 buses in East New York completes, with plans to scale to 40 more by June 2026.

First Student and Con Edison completed a $9 million pilot project installing 10 electric school buses in East New York, Brooklyn, in mid-September 2026. The project includes a trenchless charging system costing $945,000 over four weeks and 23 dual-port chargers for 45 buses in the South Bronx. First Student targets delivering 40 additional electric school buses to East New York by June 2026.

The pilot demonstrates a practical scale for transitioning school transportation: buses run a full school day on a single charge, and Con Edison forecasts electric commercial vehicles will add over 100 megawatts of electricity demand by 2030. As of June 2026, 8,500 electric school buses operate across the U.S.—a 66% increase from the same period in 2025—according to the World Resources Institute.

This shift reduces diesel costs for NYC schools while advancing the city’s zero-emission mandate. New York State requires all new school bus purchases to be zero-emission by 2032 and extended its compliance deadline to 2040. The project’s vehicle-to-grid capability target of up to 10 megawatts within two years could further stabilize local energy systems.

What to watch: First Student’s 2026 delivery timeline and whether the 10 megawatt vehicle-to-grid target meets grid demand. The NY State mandate extension response was based on school transportation associations’ concerns about upfront costs.

Source: Canary Media