In addition to the global warming and lower maintenance arguments, there's a serious children's health issue.
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From a health perspective, there’s urgency to replacing the nation’s diesel buses with cleaner alternatives. Health experts have long known that children are uniquely vulnerable to air pollution because their lungs, brains, and other major organs are still developing. They breathe faster and take in a higher volume of air relative to their body weight.
Diesel exhaust is classified as a carcinogen by the World Health Organization and contains fine particles and nitrogen oxides, both of which are well-documented asthma triggers. Research shows that children in lower-income areas and communities of color are exposed to higher levels of outdoor air pollution — from major roadways, industries, and ports with diesel truck operations. They also suffer much higher rates of asthma and respiratory illness. And so it’s particularly important, say public health experts and school officials, to get polluting school buses off the streets.
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