When you recall a school bus driving by, you can hear and feel the familiar hum of a diesel engine. One of the first things you notice about a propane school bus is how quiet it is; no drone from the engine and almost no smell from the exhaust.
Energy suppliers like Shipley Energy, a York, Pennsylvania-based energy company that supplies propane and other fuels, understand how versatile propane is. The jack-of-all-fuels can power farms, restaurants, and even school buses. When E&B Transportation in Dover, Pennsylvania, was assessing ways to update their fleet of diesel school buses for the Dover Area School District, they began looking at alternative fuel options—a move many school districts have started to assess for several reasons. Propane, an environmentally friendly fuel, appeared to fit E&B Transportation’s sustainability, financial, and maintenance goals. Having propane buses in their fleet also meant they were making the air cleaner for their passengers, the students of Dover Schools.
According to the Propane, Education & Research Council (PERC), “Propane school buses reduce costs, emissions, maintenance, and infrastructure. Propane autogas buses are making an impact on students, drivers, and administrators across the country.”
Pennsylvania had a grant program to help offset the cost of new alternative fuel buses for fleets looking to upgrade their fleet. Since 2016, E&B Transportation has used propane school buses to pick up the district’s students safely and efficiently – an easy decision for E&B’s leadership to begin swapping their fleet.
“In 2016, we were having maintenance issues with the diesel buses as well as the cost,” said Sean Wolfe, co-owner of E&B Transportation. “The general benefits of propane buses are they start and warm up faster in the cold weather, they are quieter, and are much cleaner. So, we decided to start mixing the propane buses into our fleet.” Wendy Mutschler, co-owner of E&B Transportation, added, “Since implementing the propane buses to our fleet, it’s been a success, and the drivers love them.” On a per gallon basis, propane costs about half as much as diesel, providing savings that E&B Transportation can now invest back into their fleet.
The challenge, however, was figuring out how to fuel these buses to keep operations running smoothly. That is where Shipley Energy stepped in to help with E&B’s propane needs. Each week, Shipley Energy’s propane delivery trucks come to E&B Transportation’s lot in Dover to fill each bus with propane so their drivers never have to worry about filling the tank. “Since Shipley Energy has started delivering to us, it’s been an amazing partnership,” Wolfe said. “The delivery people are outstanding; the office staff is outstanding, and they do such a great job with our propane needs.”
E&B Transportation has been in business for over 75 years and is a fourth-generation company. Shipley Energy is a local energy supplier that has been delivering propane, heating oil, diesel, and gasoline to commercial, wholesale, and residential customers for over 90 years.
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