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The white top on a school bus helps keep the interior of the bus cool. By reflecting overhead sunlight, the white top reduces the amount of heat that the roof will absorb and transfer into the passenger cabin. Different colors reflect and absorb energy from sunlight differently. The Department of Energy's Office of Science Education explains that the color white reflects almost all of the visible and invisible wavelengths of sunlight and thus absorbs very little of the sun's incidental energy in the form of heat. A study conducted by North Carolina's Brunswick County schools found that on summer days the interiors of school buses with white tops were significantly cooler than buses with traditional yellow tops. Buses with white tops stayed 10 degrees cooler on average and as much as 17 degrees cooler during the sunniest hours of the day. The Brunswick County study also found that children tended to be better behaved on the cooler buses. In addition, motorists reported that school buses with white tops were easier to see. There are specialized vehicle roof coating products that provide additional benefits beyond the reflective properties of white paint. For example, Bus Kote from Hy-Tech Thermal Solutions is a white elastomeric ceramic coating that also insulates, waterproofs, soundproofs, resists mildew and reflects ultraviolet rays. California schools were the first to use white-topped buses, beginning in the early 1970s. The New York Times: Cooling (and Safety) Trend For Buses: White Tops Hy-Tech Thermal Solutions: Bus & Recreational Vehicle Coating Office of DOE Science Education: Heat Absorption vs. ColorEffects
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by Echo141 on October 6th, 2011
School buses have no air conditioning, no ventilation (other than windows) and no insulation. The white tops help to reflect sunlight to keep the bus from getting too warm.
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