Latest news with #RossSzabo
Forbes
16-05-2025
- Health
- Forbes
Parents See Electric School Buses And Student Mental Health Links, Survey Suggests
While electric school buses are often lauded as an important step in the move to cleaner and less-polluting forms of transportation, a recent survey also suggests there may be additional benefits in terms of managing students' mental health. The survey by Highland Electric Fleets found voters and parents strongly associate electric school buses with better student mental health, particularly for children with special needs or sensory sensitivities. Two-thirds (67%) of the parents surveyed believe that reducing stressors like diesel fumes and noise during the school commute can help support their child's emotional and academic success. A similar number (70%) of voters agreed a calmer ride is important for students' mental health, while among parents, the number rises to 81%. And 70% of voters agreed a calmer ride is important for students' mental health, while among parents, the number rises to 81%. Mental health speaker Ross Szabo said traditional diesel-powered school buses are 'super loud', which means it is hard to have a 'sense of calm or peacefulness' when travelling onboard in an interview. Szabo added the commute to school or work often determines how we feel during the rest of the day, and if the 'start of the day is rough, then the whole day can be rough'. 'We are in a mental health crisis around the world,' Szabo told me. 'It's not just America. But I was really pleased to see in this survey how many people are getting the holistic approach, and how much the daily school bus commute can matter to young people.' 'The sound of a diesel engine on a school bus is loud, which often means the kids onboard are having to be louder than the bus,' said Szabo. 'With electric vehicles, the sound of the engine is much quieter. Noise is a big issue, particularly for neurodivergent students who have a higher sensory response, so electric school busses make a big difference to them.' New York-based psychiatrist Dr. Jeff Ditzell said a lot of children with children with autism, special needs and other conditions have an increased sensitivity to sound, noise and light in an interview. Dr. Ditzell any means of transportation which can offer a 'calmer ambient situation' is likely to provide more emotional regulation for children and young people. 'A lot of these kids also have physical sensory issues, so a more comfortable environment is likely to translate into less anxiety,' he told me. 'And if they are agitated when they begin their school day, and distracted getting off the bus, they may already be starting to have anxious rumination or intrusive thoughts. 'This means it's going to be very difficult to get their inner environment calm again, modulated and get into the school day.' Moms Clean Air Force's public health manager, Elizabeth Bechard said here are so many benefits of electric school buses for children's well-being, including reduced exposure to dangerous diesel exhaust in an email. Bechard added breathing in traffic pollution like the diesel fumes from traditional school buses has been linked to a range of mental health harms, from increased anxiety to impaired cognitive function. 'Electric school buses offer a cleaner, quieter, healthier ride to school—something that promotes peace of mind both for students and their parents,' she said. And Highland Electric Fleets founder and chief executive Duncan McIntyre said it was encouraging to see so many parents recognizing the benefits electric school buses bring to students in a statement. McIntyre added Highland was proud to partner with school districts across the country, because it is 'not just about cleaner air and lower emissions, it's about providing a calmer, healthier, and quieter ride' for students.
Cision Canada
07-05-2025
- Health
- Cision Canada
New Survey: Voters Link Electric School Buses to Better Student Mental Health
BEVERLY, Mass., May 7, 2025 /CNW/ -- A new national survey conducted by Highland Electric Fleets finds that voters and parents strongly associate electric school buses with better student mental health, particularly for children with special needs or sensory sensitivities. The findings reflect a growing understanding of how school transportation affects student well-being and readiness to learn. Two-thirds of U.S. parents (67%) believe that reducing stressors like diesel fumes and noise during the school commute can help support their child's emotional and academic success. This sentiment is echoed more broadly: 70% of voters say a calmer ride is important for students' mental health, and among parents, that number rises to 81%. "We can't talk about student mental health without addressing their surroundings and routine—and that includes their transportation experience to and from school," said Ross Szabo, mental health speaker and the CEO of Human Power Project. "A calmer, quieter school bus experience is a simple way to cut down on stress, help kids show up ready to learn, and set a more relaxed tone for the start and end of their day." When asked which type of bus better supports students' mental health, voters were four times more likely to choose electric over diesel. Concern about diesel exposure is common, with two-thirds of voters expressing at least some concern, including 71% of mothers. Support is even stronger when respondents consider students with sensory sensitivities or who are neurodivergent. Many view the quieter, smoother ride of electric buses as a meaningful way to reduce sensory stress and create a more inclusive experience. For these students, and for others, there is also growing recognition that reducing exposure to diesel exhaust can contribute to a healthier ride overall. "It's encouraging to see so many parents recognizing the benefits electric school buses bring to students," said Duncan McIntyre, Founder and CEO of Highland Electric Fleets. "At Highland, we're proud to partner with school districts across the country to help transition fleets from diesel to electric, because it's not just about cleaner air and lower emissions, it's about providing a calmer, healthier, and quieter ride that helps set students up for success." About Highland Electric Fleets Highland Electric Fleets is North America's leading provider of electrification-as-a-service. Founded in 2019, Highland makes it simple and affordable to transition fleets of all sizes to electric, from school buses to public safety, municipal and commercial vehicles. Highland led the first use of electric school buses in a commercial vehicle-to-grid (V2G) program and operates the largest electric school bus project in the U.S. With approximately 95% of school buses built in the U.S., the shift to electric drives American innovation, strengthens domestic manufacturing, and creates jobs in communities across the country in addition to reducing emissions and lowering operating costs. Learn more at Methodology The April 2025 Echelon Insights Verified Voter Omnibus was fielded online from April 10-14, 2025, in English among a sample of N=1,014 voters in the Likely Electorate (LE) nationwide using non-probability sampling. The sample was weighted to reflect modeled turnout and demographic characteristics of the population of voters in the 2024 likely electorate based on a probabilistic model derived from the L2 voter file and the US Census Bureau's American Community Survey demographic data adjusted to match voter registration estimates from the November 2020 Current Population Survey Voting and Registration Supplement. Weighting dimensions included gender, age, race/ethnicity, education, region, party, and voting history. Data quality measures included the use of trap questions to check for attentiveness and measures to prevent and remove duplicate responses based on IP address and voter file matches. Calculated the way it would be for a random sample and adjusted to incorporate the effect of weighting; the margin of sampling error is +/- 3.5 percentage points. Media Contact
