Come this spring, students in the Lafayette Parish School System will be ferried to and from school in any one of eight new propane-fueled school buses.
Come this spring, students in the Lafayette Parish School System will be ferried to and from school in any one of eight new propane-fueled school buses.
The Advocate reports that the Lafayette Parish School Board has approved the $710,000 purchase of eight new school buses that are powered by propane rather than diesel.
District Transportation Director Bill Samec said the buses cost about $88,000 each, which is about $6,000 more than a diesel-powered bus, but the expected annual fuel cost savings makes the extra up-front costs worth it.
"Based on current rates, propane is about $1.80 and diesel is $3.85," Samec said.
According to Samec's estimates, the buses will save an average of $3,000 a year in fuel costs in addition to lower emissions and maintenance costs attributed to conventional diesel-powered school buses.
Read more here.