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School Bus Company to Implement Anti-Idling Program, Pay Penalties for Idling Violations in Conn. and R.I.

Release Date: 11/26/2012
Contact Information: David Deegan, (617) 918-1017

(Boston, Mass. – Nov. 26, 2012) - To settle EPA’s claims of excessive diesel idling in Connecticut and Rhode Island, a family of bus companies will commit to reduce idling from its school bus fleet of 7,500 buses operating in 16 states. 

The settlement between EPA and Ocean State Transit and STA of Connecticut, both subsidiaries of Student Transportation of America (STA), will address excessive school bus idling and reduce school children’s exposure to diesel pollution. Under the settlement, the companies will pay a $35,000 penalty and perform environmental projects valued at $131,000.

In fall 2011, EPA observed school buses idling for extended periods of time at Ocean State locations in East Greenwich and South Kingstown, R.I. and at STA of Connecticut locations in Danbury, Naugatuck, Higganum, Stamford (two locations), and Groton, Conn.  EPA observed some buses idling for over thirty minutes before the buses left the lot to pick up school children. The state idling regulations in question, which are enforceable by EPA, generally limit idling in Connecticut to three minutes and in Rhode Island to five minutes.

Under the settlement, the companies will implement a national training and management program to prevent excessive idling from STA’s entire fleet of school buses. Through this program, STA drivers, dispatchers, and managers will be trained to comply with state and local anti-idling regulations and to avoid excessive idling. STA will require all of its supervisors to monitor idling in school bus lots, will post anti-idling signs in areas where drivers congregate, and will notify the school districts it serves of its anti-idling policy.

In addition, STA of Connecticut will replace 9 older school buses with new buses that are equipped with state-of-the-art pollution controls, and Ocean State will install GPS units and tracking systems on 117 of its buses to facilitate tracking and eliminate excessive idling.

Idling diesel engines emit pollutants which can cause or aggravate a variety of health problems including asthma and other respiratory diseases, and the fine particles in diesel exhaust are a likely human carcinogen. Diesel exhaust not only contributes to area-wide air quality problems, but more direct exposure can cause lightheadedness, nausea, sore throat, coughing, and other symptoms. Drivers, school children riding on the buses, facility workers, neighbors and bystanders are all vulnerable.

Idling school buses consume about one-half gallon of fuel per hour. Calculations indicate that by eliminating excess idling in its fleet, STA would annually reduce its fuel use by 135,000 gallons and avoid emitting over 3 million pounds of carbon dioxide.

This agreement is similar to earlier settlements with First Student, Inc. and Durham School Services, LP.  After those companies, Student Transportation, Inc. is the third-largest provider of school bus transportation services in North America.  STA operates in: Rhode Island, Connecticut, Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Florida, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Texas, Washington, and California.

More information: EPA Clean Diesel Campaign (https://www.epa.gov/otaq/diesel/index.htm)

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