As the end of summer draws near, we are reminded that fall is just around the corner by the back to school commercials that flood our televisions and the increasing amount of big yellow school buses beginning to occupy the roads. It is that time of year again when children are preparing to head back to school. According to the EPA, "School buses travel about four billion miles each year, and more than 25 million students ride a bus to school every day." While the EPA has risen emission standards to reduce the harmful effects of diesel exhaust, there are still precautions that school districts, bus companies and bus drivers should take to further reduce the negative impact that these emissions have on human health:
- By reducing the amount of time a bus idles, both emissions and expenses can be reduced as well
- Every year, bus companies should consider retiring its oldest bus from their fleet
- See if your school district or bus company qualifies for funding provided by the EPA's diesel emission reduction programs
For more information on how to reduce diesel emissions from school buses, visit www.eps.gov/cleanschoolbus/csb-overview.
