October 11, 2018
On September 5, 2018, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) released the “Clean Transportation NY: Using the Volkswagen Settlement to Drive Clean Transportation in New York.” A $127-million-dollar plan has been set up in NYS, paid for by Volkswagen, to compensate for its 25,000 defective diesel vehicles in the state. The DEC estimates that New York’s plan, once implemented, would reduce emissions equivalent to those from 65,000 vehicles. The plan is intended to be completed over three years.
There are three main goals of the VW Settlement Plan. The first is to prioritize the electrification of the state’s transportation system. There is already a separate plan to have 230,000 electric vehicles (EVs) in New York State by 2020, encouraged by state rebates to EV buyers and a build-out of EV charging stations.
The second goal is to remove the dirtiest diesel engines. Part of this goal is to promote economic justice by helping neighborhoods suffering from the dirtiest transportation. For example, some dirty diesel garbage trucks in New York City could be replaced by hybrids or trucks with cleaner-burning engines. The third goal is to attract private investment, which could bring total funding up to $300 million for vehicle electrification.
The VW Settlement Plan has ten separate expenditure areas. The largest is to allot at least $52 million for transit buses, school buses and shuttle buses. Another area is to spend about $20 million on light-duty, zero-emission vehicle supply equipment. This does not include charging infrastructure on highways — for which $250 million has already been earmarked — but would focus on charging stations near hospitals, environmental justice areas, etc.
Another $30 million would be spent replacing diesel engines on heavy municipal vehicles. A final $25 to $27 million would be spent on airport transportation, drays, rail switching and ferries. At least 60% of this money would go to all-electric vehicles, including heavy-duty trucks, airport ground support, port handling equipment and light-duty electric vehicle charging equipment.
Where the money goes will be determined by who applies for it! Here the Sierra Club can assist by finding good applicants for full electrification. The Atlantic Chapter intends to contact municipalities, universities, etc. to push for such purchases of electric buses and other vehicles. The VW Settlement can act as an important first step for town and city officials seeking to commit to 100% renewable energy goals.
The DEC is accepting comments on the Settlement Plan from the public. You may wish to comment with suggested grant opportunities for your locality. Other helpful statements would be to support the importance of using the funds to promote the full electrification of New York’s transportation system.