Mass_Transit_June_2021 - 32

LTD's Sustainability Effort
" within three years, we will have
25 percent of our fleet, which is 25
buses, all electric. We've already
had delivery of 11 [electric] buses
and awarded a contract [in April
2021] for 19 more. So, we have the
30 [buses] already in the queue
to meet that goal, " Jackson said.
For the long-term goals, the
board remained technology agnostic
and instead focused on the
desired outcomes of GHG and
fossil fuel reduction. So, while
LTD will continue to electrify its
fleet, it's simultaneously conducting
a fleet procurement plan, in
partnership with consulting firm
WSP, to evaluate all the different
fuels and technologies on the
market today for the conditions
specific to LTD's operating area
in Lane County, Oregon.
Similarly to how Hoell's GHG
inventory looked at the entire
production and life cycle,
the
fleet procurement plan will look
at the long-term vehicle replacement
for the next 70 buses, as
well as the 30 electric buses. Jackson
adds the plan will examine
the life cycle impact of the buses
and if electrifying the entire fleet
is really the best option moving
forward when considering the
triple bottom line approach.
One alternative to electricity
LTD is interested in and will
examine in the fleet procurement
plan is hydrogen fuel cell
technology. Coincidentally, the
Eugene Water & Electric Board
(EWEB), a local utility company,
is in the planning stage of building
a hydrogen facility powered
by hydropower instead of fossil
fuels, producing storable green
power. This could give LTD an
opportunity to use hydrogen-fueled
vehicles, but Jackson quickly
noted this would require a partnership
with EWEB. Otherwise,
LTD would either need to build
its own hydrogen fueling station
or rely on diesel trucks to bring
it in to the local area.
" Although there would be
some reduction from our vehicles,
32 | Mass Transit | MassTransitmag.com | JUNE 2021
LTD
LTD RECEIVED delivery of 11 electric buses in March
and awarded a contract in April for 19 more, which
are expected to arrive by 2023.
Between 2016 and 2017, LTD
partnered with the Springfield
Utility Board (SUB) to redo its
bus yard to convert and add
the necessary infrastructure to
support an electric fleet. And the
district didn't stop there. Noting
the challenges agencies in California
faced working with utility
companies, Hoell has testified
before the SUB Board members
and staff asking about charging
rates to avoid surcharges associated
with peak demand.
LTD is also working with the
surrounding communities to research
and procure lower carbon
alternatives for construction materials,
such as warm mix asphalt,
Hoell explains. This relates to the
GHG inventory that also examined
efficiency improvements
related to the goods and services
LTD consumes.
" Even though LTD doesn't
have direct ownership of those
emissions as they're shared with
the manufacturers that are making
the goods and services that
we buy, we do have some opportunities
to influence the scale of
those emissions, like from the
construction materials that we're
consuming for a major capital
project and the buses that we
purchase, " Hoell explained.
LTD is also part of the United
LTD
" ...the
last thing you
want is fossil fuel
to be powering
your electricity
because then
you're not making
a difference. "
- AURORA
JACKSON, general
manager, LTD
BETWEEN 2016 and 2017, LTD
worked with the Springfield
Utility Board to redo its bus
yard to convert and add the
necessary infrastructure to
support an electric fleet.
we're still not weaning ourselves
off fossil fuels, " Jackson said. " But
we are optimistic that hydrogen
fuel cell power in a partnership
with EWEB could be viable. "
Partnerships Provide
Funding Opportunities
EWEB isn't
Front Partnership. The partnership
includes public entities, such
as LTD, and works with the federal
legislators to identify and advocate
for regional priorities that
result in funding. A top regional
priority right now is the transformation
of the Franklin Corridor,
a street that connects downtown
Eugene, downtown Springfield
and runs through the University
of Oregon. The corridor already
has a bus rapid transit system,
but additional infrastructure
improvements have been identified
by the partnership to increase
transit frequency.
The partnership is planning
the only utility
company LTD is working with.
to apply for the recently announced
Rebuilding American
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