Seminar series

Past seminars

Electrifying School Bus Fleet:
Health Benefits, Economic Implications, Logistic Challenges, and Community Engagement
(Dec. 14, 2023)

Approximately 20,000 school buses carry over 833,000 students to school every day in Ontario, with over 90% of these buses running on diesel fuel. Air pollution from diesel buses has been linked to serious health and educational impacts on the children they transport each and every day. The rapid deployment of electric school buses across Ontario’s school boards would protect children’s health, reduce carbon emissions, and strengthen the province’s automotive manufacturing industry. Beyond the numerous benefits electric school buses can provide, they offer a rich opportunity for community collaboration. Successful transitions to improve the school bus system would bring together school boards, school transportation providers, manufacturers across the supply chain, policymakers at the local, provincial, and national levels, and academia conducting research on the benefits and logistics of school bus electrification.

A recorded video of the seminar

About 70% of the world’s population will be living in urban areas by the year 2050. Insufficient urban and transportation planning contributes to unhealthy living conditions such as air pollution, noise, heat islands, a lack of green spaces, and premature deaths. The purpose of this seminar is to discuss how better urban and transportation planning can improve public health, what can be learned from Norway, a world leader in electrification, and how transportation options will evolve over time and be influenced by societal trends. … Learn more

A recorded video of the seminar