The lowest literacy rates and the shiniest electric buses.
Finally, there’s some good news out of the Bronx.
There was a time when the Bronx was known for literary giants like Edgar Allan Poe, James Baldwin, Mark Twain, Mary Higgins Clark and Stan Lee amongst others. Today, the Bronx has the lowest literacy rate across the five boroughs and, until recently, no bookstores.
Oh wait, not that good news. This good news.
Mayor Eric Adams announced Monday kids in the Bronx will be saying goodbye to diesel school buses and hello to 180 new electric ones.
Due to a $77 million federal grant, the Federal Bipartisan Infrastructure law is quadrupling the number of electric buses already present in the city. It’s also funding the nation’s first-ever electric truck charging depot to be placed at the Hunts Point Market.
Finally, kids in the Bronx will be going to school to learn nothing in electric buses. You know the ones that tend to break down if you look at them funny.
This is the second round of Clean School Bus grants given to the city. In 2023, 51 electric buses were added to streets. This latest round moves New York City schools one step closer to achieving a full green fleet by 2035.
Whew. Just in time for that 9% decline in enrollment. And those soaring test scores.
Students experienced setbacks during the pandemic but for the first time, test results are showing just how much learning has been lost.
The area with the lowest test results were in districts 7 and 9 in the south and west Bronx where about 70% of Black and Latino students failed to show proficiency on both exams.
But at least they’ll have electric buses. The lowest literacy rates and the shiniest electric buses.
Article posted with permission from Daniel Greenfield
