Grace School District gets a new type of bus

One bus from Grace School District is hitting the road with a different type of fuel under its hood. It uses propane instead of diesel to power it.

Lloyd Sorensen, the transportation supervisor for the school district, said their biggest reason for getting a propane bus was cost.

The bus cost $99,000, which was funded by the Idaho State Department of Education.

It could save Grace School District more than one dollar per gallon on fuel. While diesel buses cost upwards of two dollars per gallon to fill up, the propane bus costs only 89 cents per gallon.

But it saves more than money; it saves the environment.

“The pollutants that come out of it are much better than the diesel,” said Sorensen.

Compared with diesel, it reduces nitrogen oxide emissions by 1,500 pounds.

Even with its benefits, there are a few drawbacks.

“We’re all used to driving diesel buses, and this acts different than a diesel,” said Sorensen.

“Diesel buses have more torque,” he said. “They have a little more torque, which gives them more power and they lug better, where this is a gas type of vehicle and it just drives different. The power’s different.”

There’s one more thing that Sorensen said could be improved about the propane bus.

“Doesn’t quite get the mileage that a diesel bus gets, but the fuel’s definitely a lot cheaper, so we’re hoping it turns out to be a good investment for the district,” said Sorensen.

So will this be one-of-a-kind for Grace School District or will there be more in the future?

“We’ll just see how this one works out for us,” said Sorensen. “We’ll put some miles on it in the next couple of years and if it looks like it’s going to be what we want, we’ll definitely look into more of them.”

Another thing that was new with this bus for the district is a child-safety button in the back. Drivers have to push the button and do a check before they exit the bus. If they don’t, an alarm sounds.