Tri-County Electric Vehicle Shared Services Purchasing Initiative Albany, Suffolk, and Westchester Counties Announce New EV Charging Stations and Fleet Electrification Plan By Kate Pierce, NYSAC Multimedia Specialist
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lbany County has recently joined Suffolk and Westchester Counties in a tri-county agreement that increases the combined purchasing power and will drive down the costs associated with transitioning the counties away from fossil fuel-powered fleets. The new shared services partnership to procure electric vehicles (EV) is an effort to tackle climate change, reduce the consumption of fossil fuels, save taxpayer dollars, and develop a shared services framework that will serve as a model for other local governments across the State. “Albany County was designated a Climate Smart Community by New York State because we’ve demonstrated our commitment to preventing and preparing for climate change, including through our past investments in electric vehicles and charging infrastructure,” said Albany County Executive Dan McCoy. “I’m proud to build on that progress by partnering with likeminded county executives through this innovative shared services plan.” The plan allows all three counties to move to 100% electric vehicle fleets by no later than 2030. Installing new charging stations throughout Albany County is also part of the initiative. They will be put at the county parking lot on Washington Avenue, the Ann Lee Nature Preserve and the Lawson Lake County Park. “There is no denying the impacts that climate change is having across the State, but through strategic partnerships such as this, we can significantly reduce our carbon footprint and harmful emissions,” said Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone. “With Albany County now joining together with Suffolk and Westchester, we can further drive down the cost of these electric vehicles, saving critical taxpayer dollars.” In May, similar to President Joe Biden’s recent Executive Order, Westchester County Executive George Latimer and Bellone signed dual Executive Orders that directed their respective county departments to develop plans to convert their vehicle fleets to electric by 2030.
Departments were directed to submit plans to the County Executive and requisite departments to achieve clean and zeroemissions fleets by 2030 or sooner. “As we saw with Hurricane Ida, climate change is real, it is here, and we must act now to do something about it,” said Latimer. “This policy will put us on the forefront of this fight, leading by example so other local governments around the State and country can follow.” Currently, Westchester County’s fleet includes 17 all electric cars and 68 plug in hybrids. Westchester County has also recently added six all electric Bee-Line Buses on the fleet. The buses, which are all part of the clean fleet initiative, are two 40-foot buses and four 35-foot buses. In addition to meeting sustainability goals by reducing emissions, these new electric buses will save Westchester County money by providing the system with significant fuel savings. “It is our job on the local level to ensure we are leading the way and doing everything we can to reduce our carbon footprint and harmful emissions from transportation to create a cleaner, healthier environment for our residents,” said Bellone. “This joint procurement will lay the groundwork towards a clean, zero-emissions fleet by 2030. Not only are we building back, but we are building back better with cleaner, greener energy.” Other counties around New York State are encouraged to follow suit to further increase the buying power for purchases and further drive down costs paid by counties. Additionally, this new policy allows for the local municipalities within each of the three counties to buy and lease electric vehicles as well. “Not only will we cut our emissions through this plan, we will also be cutting the price tag, which will ultimately benefit our taxpayers,” said McCoy. “It’s my hope that more counties will partner with us, and this progress will encourage those in the private sector to follow suit.” NYSAC News | www.nysac.org
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