Cleo (right) is one of dozens of students about to hit the road in a new kind of school bus. Photo: Claire Sams.
Year 6 pupil Cleo is about to be one of the first Queanbeyan kids to travel on electric school buses.
The Googong resident normally travels to and from Queanbeyan Public School on a conventional bus.
“The ride is probably about 15 minutes,” she said.
From term four, Cleo and some of her fellow students in NSW and the ACT will go electric.
“I’m really excited to have a go on them. They look very posh and new,” she said.
“[I think] it’ll be a lot smoother than the other buses.”
VDI Australia has supplied three electric buses as part of a statewide trial.
The buses – a 28-seater and two with 57 seats – will charge at the CDC Depot in Queanbeyan, ready to hit the roads each morning and afternoon.
Transport for NSW project manager Sandra Robinson said she eagerly awaited the 18-month regional trials.
“We really want to see how these buses perform in our regions, where there are a lot of challenges environmentally,” she said.
In NSW, Queanbeyan Public School, Bungendore Public School, Karabar High School, Queanbeyan High School, Queanbeyan South Public School, Queanbeyan West Public School, Sutton Public School and St Gregory’s Primary School will see the electric school buses join their existing fleet.
In the ACT, students from Calwell High, Covenant Christian, Holy Family Primary, St Mary MacKillop College, St Benedict’s Primary, St Clare’s College and St Francis of Assisi Primary will also get the chance to ride the new vehicles.
“Queanbeyan was selected because we have those seasonal changes in temperature,” Ms Robinson said.
“We have a variation of landscapes. We have some flat areas, but some nice hilly areas too.
“We also have some very different speed areas. We’ve got 100 km areas that buses are operating [in], but also more township-type orientation.”
Three electric school buses will join the fleet currently serving schools in NSW and the ACT. Photo: Claire Sams.
Transport for NSW has contracted ComfortDelGro Corporation Australia (CDC) to operate the three buses.
CDC regional operations manager and Southern NSW fleet manager Michael Micic said drivers would receive extra training so they could adapt to the new vehicles.
“They’re pretty much exactly the same as a combustion engine to drive,” he said.
“They’re just a lot smoother and a lot quieter – and obviously, no emissions!”
Relieving principal Krystal Webb said the trial meant more than another travel option for the “50 to 150” Queanbeyan Public School students who caught the bus (depending on the day).
“Part of our core education is teaching sustainability in our science and technology units,” she said.
“Across all of our units, we are always looking at how our actions impact the world.
“It’s really important we are teaching the values that ensure students can live in an environment that is safe and clean and sustainable for the future.”
Trials in Deniliquin and Narrabri are also set to start during the current school term, joining trials launched earlier this year in Armidale and Tweed Heads.
More information on the zero-emission bus trial can be found on Transport for NSW’s website.
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