HARRISONBURG, Va. (ROCKTOWN NOW) – Harrisonburg city officials unveiled two new electric school buses today.

The process has been in the works since 2021 when the Virginia Environmental Quality Department put up a $9.25 million grant to Virginia properties for electric school buses. The city applied after getting approval from the City Manager and City Council in April of 2022.

The two buses with battery warranties cost nearly $820,000, but thanks to the grant, only $271,000 of that had to be covered by local funds.

Bill Painter, Facilities and Maintenance Manager for the City of Harrisonburg, said they are already looking forward to getting more buses.

“So now we have all the wires pulled, we have all conduits pulled, we have all the breakers, we have everything ready,” Painter said. “So, for the future, we can go to 10 buses. HEC has already said that they have a transformer ready for us when it’s needed.”

The city is now in the process of requesting reimbursement for the buses.

In an email to Rocktown Now, Harrisonburg city spokesperson Mike Parks said the buses will serve Spotswood Elementary School, Skyline Middle School and Harrisonburg High School. He added that the routes are subject to change, as needed.