Earlier this year, Potomac Edison, a subsidiary of FirstEnergy Corp., announced the launch of an $ 11.1 million five-year pilot program to deploy 28 electric school buses across seven counties in western Maryland. The goal of the project is to help school districts meet Maryland’ s Climate Solutions Now Act of 2022, which requires public schools to operate zero-emission vehicles.
Jubb’ s Bus Services Charts a Path with Propane
Rather than clear a path for cleaner air, why are we throwing down inequitable hurdles for schools to overcome
By Randy Jubb, Todd Mouw & Ryan Vance
Earlier this year, Potomac Edison, a subsidiary of FirstEnergy Corp., announced the launch of an $ 11.1 million five-year pilot program to deploy 28 electric school buses across seven counties in western Maryland. The goal of the project is to help school districts meet Maryland’ s Climate Solutions Now Act of 2022, which requires public schools to operate zero-emission vehicles.
With decades of experience in student transportation, we, too, are invested in clean, low-emission school bus options. With 1 million public school students traveling millions of miles to Maryland’ s 1,400 schools, we respectfully ask whether cornering schools into a oneoption solution is viable, fair or discerning. Yes, electric buses are wildly popular, but it’ s well-known that adopting them requires a heavy lift for school districts. While the pilot program— which aims to provide administrative support and explore opportunities for grid reliability— could result in potentially helpful learnings, 28 buses is a drop in the bucket. This project might help Maryland schools take baby steps in reducing harmful emissions, but the mandate is to run toward cleaner emissions, not stumble. A more strategic and less disruptive approach to reducing school bus emissions already has traction in the state and should be the focus of hefty investments like this one: propane school buses. There are currently 145 propane school buses operating across 15 school districts in Maryland, suggesting a solid infrastructure, familiarity with the technology and high satisfaction.
16 | SCHOOL-BUSRIDE. COM | MAY 2026