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Dominion Energy bringing electric school buses to Hampton Roads by end of 2020

School divisions in Chesapeake, Hampton, Norfolk, and Virginia Beach will receive electric school buses as participants in the program.

The first 50 buses in Dominion Energy's electric school bus program will hit the pavement by the end of 2020.

Phase one of the program will provide buses to 16 localities in Virginia, according to a news release. School divisions in Chesapeake, Hampton, Norfolk, and Virginia Beach are participants in the program.

In December, Dominion Energy selected Thomas Built Buses as the vendor for the 50 buses.

The company said the electric school buses will enhance grid reliability, reduce emissions, provide cost savings to schools.

Localities were selected based on the benefit the batteries would bring to the electric grid.

Phase two of the program, with state approval, would bring 1,000 additional electric buses by 2025.

A bill was introduced to the Virginia House of Delegates that would create a grant to replace diesel school buses with electric buses by 2030.

House Bill 1140 sets up a new block grant program that would allow school districts to seek funding to help replace their current diesel school buses with electric ones, as well as expenses for infrastructure support.

Phase three would set the goal to have 50 percent of all diesel bus replacements in Dominion Energy’s footprint be electric by 2025 and 100 percent by 2030.

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