PEI·NewPrince Edward Island’s government is pausing plans to buy electric school buses, and will instead purchase diesel ones next year.Government budgeted money for diesel buses to replace old vehiclesListen to this articleEstimated 2 minutesThe audio version of this article is generated by text-to-speech, a technology based on artificial intelligence.P.E.I. puts a stop to electric school bus purchasesThe provincial government is pausing plans to buy electric school buses, opting to only purchase diesel vehicles for the next year. The recent budget set aside money for 137 new diesel buses to replace older ones currently in use. CB’s Connor Lamont explains.Prince Edward Island’s government is pausing plans to buy electric school buses, and will instead purchase diesel ones next year.The province set money aside in its recent capital budget for 137 new diesel buses that will replace any older vehicles that are currently in use.In the P.E.I. Legislature on Nov. 6, Finance Minister Jill Burridge was asked if any of the new buses would be electric. “No, they will not,” Burridge replied. The province has said it wants to electrify the entire bus fleet by 2030.There are now 107 LION Electric school buses in use in the province, making up about a third of the fleet. LION Electric entered creditor protection in December 2024, and P.E.I. cancelled plans to buy new buses from the company earlier this year.The new budget commits just under $4 million to buy diesel buses over the next year.Provincial officials said in a statement to CBC News that the government “has paused its electric bus purchases for the time being. For the immediate future, the province will be purchasing diesel powered vehicles to replace buses that are at the end of their service life.”Lack of charging infrastructureJordan McNally, P.E.I.’s executive director of fiscal management, told MLAs in the legislature that electric buses can have trouble going longer distances without a charge.Electric vehicle chargers outside Founders’ Food Hall and Market in Charlottetown. (Jane Robertson/CBC)”They have looked at other manufacturers. There are certainly none in the Atlantic provinces with any presence here,” he said.”A lot of the bus manufacturers require level-three chargers. Most of our infrastructure is level-two.”McNally said there is work being done to install one level-three charger at each high school in the province, and that most manufacturers don’t build electric buses that use the level-two chargers that are most common in P.E.I.The province noted in its statement that whether buses are diesel or electric, the priority is to have a safe transportation system for Island students.
Province pauses plans to buy new electric school buses for P.E.I.’s fleet in 2026
