June 28, 2021: Last week, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) board of directors publicly committed to fully electrify its fleet of more than 1,500 public transit buses by 2045. WMATA operates the sixth-largest public transit bus fleet in the United States, providing service to residents in Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia.
Sierra Club played a leading role in a coalition with more than seventeen partner organizations that pressured WMATA to commit to a 100% electric bus fleet based on the public health, climate, and economic benefits of electric buses compared to diesel and other competing options. In October 2020, Sierra Club and our allies released a report calling on WMATA to publicly commit to a fully electrified fleet, based on in-house modeling quantifying the lifetime total cost of ownership savings to WMATA, the greenhouse gas emissions reductions that benefit everyone, and the more than $8 million in annual healthcare savings to area residents as result of breathing cleaner air from electric buses.
Although our call for full fleet electrification initially met with stern resistance from the agency, since then we’ve continued to advocate that WMATA commit to a clean transportation future that centers equity and people in the planning process. Last week’s vote commits WMATA to a 100% zero-emission bus fleet by 2045 and guarantees that WMATA buys only zero emission buses by 2030. This will result in significant annual greenhouse gas emissions reductions, substantial cost savings, and tremendous health benefits for DC area residents, saving them millions of dollars each year in avoided healthcare costs.
Sierra Club will continue to advocate for a swift and equitable transition to a clean transportation future. Environmental Law Program managing attorney Josh Stebbins, senior attorney Nathaniel Shoaff, and legal assistants Carlos Rivero and Francesca DiJulio worked on the modeling and drafting for the report. They partnered with leaders from the Maryland, Virginia, and Washington D.C. Sierra Club chapters, along with Clean Transportation For All representatives Rebekah Whilden, Larisa Manescu, Morgan Ellis, and Steph Larsen.