North Shore schools received $20 million for electric school buses

BEVERLY, MA — New electric school buses are coming to Beverly, Essex Tech, Marblehead and Salem as part of $20 million in cuts from the federal Clean School Bus Program, tickets to North Shore communities.

Rep. US Rep. Seth Moulton (D-Salem) said the zero-carbon school bus funding program is part of the Infrastructure Act that provides $5 billion for electric buses nationwide.

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“Taking ownership of the climate crisis isn’t just happening nationally, it’s happening locally,” Moulton said in a statement to Patch. “This funding is vital to reducing vehicle emissions and serves as a direct investment in the students who ride the bus every day.”

Moulton’s office said Salem will receive $2.6 million for 13 buses, Beverly will receive $1.455 million for eight school buses, Essex Tech will receive $1.38 million for four school buses and Marblehead will receive $200,000 for a bus.

Ipswich, Newburyport and Gloucester are also set to receive cuts.

“This funding will make a particularly significant step forward in this important work possible,” said Salem Mayor Dominick Pangallo. “Electric buses reduce overall vehicle emissions and improve air quality for children and others in our community, helping us meet critical sustainability and public health goals simultaneously. I am grateful to our federal and EPA partners for this award, as well as to the city and Salem Public Schools teams who helped secure it.”

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at [email protected]. X/Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)