East St. Louis schools launch $10M electric bus project

There’s a reason students often dub electric school buses “magic buses,” said Duncan McIntyre, the founder and CEO of Highland Electric Fleets.

There’s no being jostled around with every stop or bump in the road. And, aside from kids’ laughter, the ride is practically silent, spare a quiet hum, the nation’s largest electric school bus project found.

Come the start of next school year, East St. Louis students will experience these enchanting commutes too, as District 189 rolls out 25 new electric buses.

“This is what it looks like to put students first, to invest in their health, in their future and in a transportation system that reflects their worth,” the district’s Executive Director of Communications Sydney Stigge-Kaufman said at the project’s ceremonial groundbreaking Thursday.

Superintendent Arthur R. Culver said the project is the result of six years of efforts from elected officials, Ameren Illinois, the district’s transportation provider North America Central School Bus, District 189 and Highland Electric Fleets. The latter supports schools and transportation providers in starting and running electric school bus projects. The electric buses the district will soon receive will be Thomas Built Buses, and they will use Heliox chargers.

The total cost of District 189’s electric bus project is approximately $10 million, including the cost of the buses, ongoing electricity and maintenance, chargers and other infrastructure to power the buses, McIntyre said.

The project is funded primarily through grants from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean School Bus Program and Ameren Illinois’ Electric Vehicle Charging Program. The rest of the costs will be covered by Highland Electric Fleets and North America Central School Bus, McIntyre said.

According to a January 2024 press release from U.S. Rep. Nikki Budzinski, D-Springfield, a total of 60 clean school buses were promised throughout Southern and Central Illinois by an EPA Clean School Bus Program grant competition. Along with East St. Louis’ 25 electric buses, Cahokia Unit School District 187 and Granite City School District 9 were each allocated 10 electric buses at the time.

District 9’s buses are scheduled to arrive in spring 2026, the district’s Manager of District Communications and Transportation Chris Mitchell said. The Cahokia school district did not immediately respond to the BND’s inquiry on their electric buses’ status.

Why electric buses?

Speakers at Thursday’s groundbreaking highlighted multiple reasons why going the green route is good for students and the larger community.

“The transportation sector in the U.S. is the No. 1 emitter of carbon emissions,” said Patrick Smith, senior vice president of operations and technical services for Ameren Illinois. “These electric school buses mean cleaner air, quieter mornings for our students and fewer dollars spent on fuel.”

In areas with high asthma rates, like East St. Louis, cleaner air is even more important, Stigge-Kaufman previously told the BND. McIntyre said reduced pediatric asthma rates are just one health benefit of electric school buses.

“We found in particular they’re better for students who have sound sensitivities or learning disabilities,” McIntyre said. “They aren’t getting to school rattled — they’re getting to school incredibly calm and better prepared to take on the day.”

The sleek, shiny fleet also boosts children’s confidence, Smith said.

“When you think about kids, what they think about themselves directly correlates into what they will do for themselves,” Smith said.

“When they get on a school bus that’s … unique, that’s modern, they know that adults like us, leaders like us and other stakeholders are investing in them to do their best work. So maybe they go to school and they work a little harder, maybe they try a little harder, maybe they feel more accountable.”

This story was originally published June 16, 2025 at 6:00 AM.