Larisa Manescu, larisa.manescu@sierraclub.org
WASHINGTON, DC – Today is the two year anniversary of the Biden-Harris administration's Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) being signed into law. The IIJA invested billions of dollars into clean transportation, including funding to:
- Build a national electric vehicle charging network;
- Clean up pollution at ports;
- Expand passenger rail, including the modernization of the Northeast Corridor;
- Increase public transit routes and zero-emission buses;
- Replace the nation’s dirty diesel school buses with electric ones.
"Making our EV charging network bigger and better - especially along highway corridors - is crucial for drivers and will help keep EV sales at record levels," said Joe Halso, Staff Attorney with the Sierra Club. "The $7.5 billion from the IIJA to build out a reliable, nationwide network of EV chargers in the U.S. is a down payment on a healthy climate and good-paying green jobs."
“In California, where I live, communities living near our dirtiest ports have been treated as sacrifice zones due to little regulation to reduce idling diesel boats and electrify the harbors,” said Sierra Club Regional Manager Yassi Kavezade. “Cleaning up our ports means cleaner air, improved public health, and climate justice. California still has some of the worst smog in the country, and programs like the Port Infrastructure Development Program made possible by the IIJA will help to alleviate this chronic pollution while expanding new green jobs.”
“To truly transform our transportation systems, we must make it easier for people to choose transit,” said Rebekah Whilden, Deputy Director of the Clean Transportation for All campaign. “Rail is an important climate solution, and the IIJA invests billions to improve the Northeast corridor and expand passenger rail outside of the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic.”
“We need better service for our transit buses and for these buses to not spew pollution into neighborhoods as they make their routes,” said Jesse Piedfort, Deputy Director of the Clean Transportation for All campaign. “The IIJA – the largest federal investment in public transit ever– is replacing thousands of gas-powered vehicles with clean, zero emission vehicles; improving accessibility for the elderly and people with disabilities; and increasing public transit options for communities across the country. There is still so much more to be done, but this is an impactful step forward.”
“Children and bus drivers across the country are breathing cleaner air due to the electric school buses rolling out from the EPA’s Clean School Bus Program, made possible by the IIJA,” said Eric Willadsen, Sierra Club State Lobby and Advocacy Associate. “The $5 billion in federal funding is making this important shift happen in states and territories across the country, and the focus on lower-income, disadvantaged, and rural school districts is making sure communities impacted the most by pollution see the benefits first.”
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.