Muchos alumnos de Pensilvania ahora van a la escuela en autobuses eléctricos. Unos $900 millones de dólares del Programa Clean School Bus de la Agencia de Protección Ambiental financian autobuses menos contaminantes en más de 500 distritos escolares de todo el país.

El distrito de Steelton-Highspire recibió fondos para comprar seis autobuses eléctricos, con cargadores e infraestructura de carga para cada autobús.

Jenna Condran, directora del consejo escolar del distrito, dice que los niños le dicen que los autobuses eléctricos son "más silenciosos y tranquilos". Condran los ve como una inversión financiera que afecta al distrito escolar, la comunidad y los contribuyentes.

"Contratar conductores de autobús, reparar los autobuses y tener autobuses nuevos y actualizados a la larga significaría pagar impuestos," dice Condran. "Esos impuestos repercuten en los padres. Así que poder hacer algo como esto con energía solar ayuda en parte, porque hay muchos subsidios. Así que no solo es una ventaja para la escuela, sino que a largo plazo también podría ser una ventaja para los contribuyentes."

Pensilvania cuenta actualmente con más de 250 autobuses escolares eléctricos, pero Steelton-Highspire es el único distrito escolar del estado que tiene el 100% de su flota de autobuses electrificada. Y todo el distrito funciona con energía solar al 100%.

Brittany Barrett, de World Resources Institute, supervisa la Iniciativa de Clean School Bus. Según ella, los autobuses más antiguos han funcionado de forma desproporcionada en distritos con más alumnos de color, en zonas rurales y de bajos ingresos.

Añade que oportunidades como el Programa de Clean School Bus, los reembolsos y subsidios pueden ayudar a los distritos en la transición a alternativas más limpias.

"Esta es una gran oportunidad para analizar de manera integral como se proporciona el transporte," asegura Barret. "Con el programa Clean School Bus, hay disponibles $20,000 dólares adicionales por vehículo si se compra un autobús equipado con elevador para sillas de ruedas. Por lo tanto, queremos un acceso igualitario para todos los estudiantes."

Kevin Matthews trabaja para First Student, una empresa de transporte escolar que dice que electrificará 30,000 autobuses para 2035. Según él, eso significaría reducir más de 1.6 millones de libras de gases de efecto invernadero.

"Por cada autobús escolar diesel que retiramos y reemplazamos por uno eléctrico, se reducen 54,000 libras de gases de efecto invernadero al año," dice Matthews por lo que se trata de un cambio muy significativo y una mejora para el medio ambiente."

Matthews añade que también han observado una reducción de los costos operativos de entre el 20 y el 30% en comparación con los autobuses que funcionan con combustibles fósiles. Esto se debe principalmente al menor consumo de combustible, pero también a la reducción de las necesidades de mantenimiento.



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Communities in southern and eastern Montana were connected to passenger rail lines running from Chicago to Seattle until 1979. An effort to fund the revival of those routes passed the House but failed in the Montana Senate this week by a few votes.

The Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority has garnered support from county commissioners, city council members and Montanans across party lines since its creation in 2020, especially in communities that could again become rail towns.

Jason Stuart, vice chair of the authority, called rural rail a "critical lifeline."

"Folks need access to critical health care services and other services and the only way they can reach them is by car," Stuart noted. "Passenger trains would just be such a blessing for all these communities up and down, throughout Southern Montana and southern North Dakota."

He added it would bring economic opportunities as well. House Bill 848 had requested $2 million from the state's railroad car tax to go to the authority annually, about half of its average revenue.

Opponents, largely with the freight industry, argued they should not be expected to subsidize passenger rail.

Rep. Forrest Mandeville, R-Columbus, brought a late amendment suggesting each local government entity that is a rail authority member fund it with $50,000 annually.

Samantha Beyl, Rosebud County director for the Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority, said the payments are not practical.

"Especially the rural towns, I don't see how any one county has an extra $50,000 laying around to do that," Beyl contended.

A $500,000 grant from the Federal Railroad Administration's Corridor Identification and Development Program helped support plans for the Big Sky North Coast Corridor, mapped from Glendive to Saint Regis through Billings, Helena and Missoula.


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Law enforcement agencies are still trying to get the message through about the dangers and costs that stem from distracted driving.

A Minnesota police chief is echoing calls for people to realize that a text message can wait.

April is Distracted Driving Awareness Month.

This year, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration rolled out its "Put the Phone Away or Pay" campaign in hopes of convincing drivers to resist looking at their cell phones when behind the wheel.

Winona Police Chief Tom Williams said he feels this is still a pervasive issue.

"We've kind of lost track of the responsibilities associated with operating a motor vehicle," said Williams, "and we're so attached to our phones and social media."

Williams encouraged drivers to seek out safe spaces to pull over -- like a well-lit parking lot -- to answer a text or email, if it's urgent.

Along some roadways around the country, transportation departments have added texting zones, similar to areas for a stalled vehicle.

Last year, there were 29 deaths linked to distracted driving in Minnesota, up from the previous year.

Like most states, Minnesota has laws that require hands-free cell phone use when driving.

Car technology has improved to keep motorists connected while still paying attention to the road. But Williams said many models out there are not equipped with those amenities.

"And people aren't necessarily always going to spend anything," said Williams, "for aftermarket additions to their cars."

Analysts say some newer cars have too many technological bells and whistles that can overwhelm a driver, even if they're hands-free.

They say things like collision warning features might be making drivers too reliant on those aids, diminishing their safety instincts.

Federal officials estimate distracted driving costs Americans $129 billion each year due to property damage, medical expenses and legal fees.




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A new report has found some progress has been made to improve the nation's aging infrastructure, but a lot more needs to be done.

This week, the American Society of Civil Engineers released its 2025 Report Card for America's Infrastructure. It gives the nation an overall grade of "C," up from a "C-minus" in 2021.

Kristina Swallow, assistant city manager for the City of Tucson, credited the Inflation Reduction Act and Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, even as both have been targeted by the Trump administration. She said more improvements will require more funding.

"We feel it," Swallow pointed out. "If you get stuck in traffic or if you have somebody who is injured while they're riding their bike or walking to work, you know that the system isn't necessarily working the way it should be. We want to help make sure that when industry, local, state and federal governments invest in infrastructure, that they're doing it wisely."

The report showed just over half of Arizona roads are in either poor or fair condition. It noted $12 billion is needed to improve drinking water systems and $4 billion to upgrade wastewater systems in the state.

Swallow pointed out bridges are among the brighter spots in Arizona's scores, with fewer than 2% of the more than 8,500 bridges in the state in poor condition. She stressed the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law was essential to support maintenance.

"While Arizona has generally, I think, some of the better bridges in the nation, that additional bridge investment on a national level really helped some of the other states address some of their poor and failing bridges," Swallow observed. "As well as start to look at some of the 'fair' bridges and bring them back up into good repair."

Community expansion and climate change have increased demand for repairs. Swallow added some voters have noticed and supported initiatives at the ballot box in recent years.

"In Tucson, they've voted three times to invest in roadway infrastructure, in connections and greenways and in parks," Swallow reported. "Because they recognize that the community members in Tucson need to have roads that meet their needs."

And even if current federal infrastructure funding were to remain the same, the report added there would still be a $3.7 trillion gap over the next decade.


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