Ninety-three school districts in Kentucky have been awarded $8.13 million to replace 169 older diesel school buses with cleaner diesel or propane buses.
Kentucky Today reports that the funding for the buses comes from the nationwide Volkswagen settlement fund.
In 2016, the U.S. Justice Department settled claims against Volkswagen for using devices in 2009-2016 Volkswagen diesel vehicles that enabled them to emit up to 40% more nitrogen oxides than allowed under the Clean Air Act.
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear recommended that the settlement funds be used to replace more than 150 school buses across the state.
“The past year has been enormously difficult for Kentucky’s school districts, and this is one area where we can give them much-deserved support,” Beshear says. “These buses will better protect our environment and will mean healthier air for the children in these 93 districts.”
Under the program, districts receive reimbursement once they show they have received the new bus and stopped using the old one.
“These new buses will be safely transporting the next generation of students for years to come,” says Kentucky Education Commissioner Jason Glass. “This reimbursement will make a big difference for local districts as they replace their buses with healthier and more sustainable vehicles.”
