New York City has announced it will spend $420 million in electric vehicles, charging infrastructure, and alternative fuels as it tries to accelerate the shift to zero-emission mobility in all its municipal operations.
The city is targeting a completely electric fleet by 2035. This brings back the goal by five years as it had been targeting 2040 before.
The new goal is significant because it has broadened the ICE vehicles it targets. With this update, all light-duty, medium-duty, and non-emergency heavy-duty vehicles must be electrified by 2035. Only essential vehicles like fire engines will be allowed to operate till 2040 if suitable electric replacements cannot be found for them.
It also makes New York City’s plan the most aggressive in the country. The city owns about 30,000 vehicles, the largest for any municipality in the country.
According to the new executive order signed by Mayor Bill de Blasio, the city’s Department of Citywide Administrative Services (DCAS) will:
- Begin a central replacement program for the City’s gas-powered vehicles, starting with at least 1,250 in 2022. DCAS is in the process of finalizing a contract with a Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprise (M/WBE) vendor to supply many of these vehicles.
- Install at least 1,776 fast electric vehicle chargers spanning all five boroughs by 2030. DCAS will make at least 100 of the 1,776 fast chargers open to the public. DCAS completed its 100th fast charger last month, with 11 open to the public, and is beginning work on an additional 275.
- Add 180 portable mobile electric vehicle chargers and solar carports. These solar carports and portable chargers can be moved from location to location, supporting flexible and emergency charging as the City of New York transitions the fleet to electric vehicles. Solar carports can fully power vehicles without a connection to the electric grid. Both technologies can serve as a power back-up for electric vehicles in the event of a power outage.
- Expand the use of other alternative fuels, including renewable diesel, a 99% petroleum-free alternative to traditional diesel fuel. Renewable diesel is made from domestic waste products, achieves a 60% greenhouse gas reduction, and features lower tailpipe emissions than fossil fuel. It also is manufactured to the same specification as regular diesel, enabling seamless use by the City fleet and storage in the City’s fuel storage tanks. Renewable diesel will be used in the truck fleet until electric vehicle units are available.
- Transition all vehicles operated by senior City officials to be exclusively electric by June 30, 2023. DCAS and the NYC Mayor’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB) will also conduct a review of the suitability of each SUV used in city government to end the unnecessary use of such vehicles.
However, the new funding is in addition to the $75 million announced for purchasing electric vehicles and building charging infrastructure in September.
Renewable Brief 