Pierce Transit received a visit from Washington Gov. Jay Inslee on Feb. 4, where he talked with agency leaders about electric vehicle technology and the pursuit of electrifying the bus and vanpool fleets.
Joining the governor were Pierce Transit Board Vice Chair Marty Campbell, Pierce Transit CEO Sue Dreier, agency leaders and staff from the governor’s office and Pierce Transit.
“Pierce Transit has long been a leader on environmental stewardship in public transportation, and these efforts continue their innovative work,” Gov. Jay Inslee said. “This is just another example of how Washington is leading the way to a clean transportation system.”
Pierce Transit says it already has one of the cleanest bus fleets in the nation, with about 80 percent of its buses running on compressed natural gas and another 15 percent being hybrid-electrics. Just eight percent of the agency’s bus fleet runs on diesel, according to Pierce Transit.
In 2016, Pierce Transit received a $2.55 million Low or No Emission Program federal grant to purchase three battery-electric buses and related charging infrastructure. Those electric buses, the first in South Sound, went into service in 2018. Last year the agency ordered three more battery-electric buses, scheduled to be in service in 2021, funded with Washington State Department of Ecology Air Pollution Control Account funds and a local match. This year, Pierce Transit will order three more using a combination of agency funds and Department of Ecology funding that originated with the federal Volkswagen settlement. Pierce Transit has a goal of converting 30 percent of its bus fleet to electric.
In 2019, Pierce Transit acquired eight hybrid electric vanpool vans, funded primarily with a grant from the Washington State Department of Transportation’s Vanpool Investment Program. Pierce Transit partnered with Tacoma Public Utilities (TPU) in a pilot project to provide the vans to TPU vanpool groups. TPU installed the charging infrastructure on site, so the vans could charge during the day while the vanpoolers are at work. The plug-in hybrid electric Chrysler Pacifica vans are powered by 97 percent carbon-free electricity and run 32 miles on battery power before needing to be recharged or tap into gasoline. Pierce Transit says it is estimated the eight electric vans are eliminating 56 tons of CO2 emissions a year, equivalent to 6,000 gallons of gasoline. Pierce Transit hopes to expand the hybrid-electric vanpool van program by acquiring more electric vans and offering them to other employers who are willing to install charging stations at their worksites.
“Pierce Transit is an innovative agency that has been leading the way with clean transportation technology for the past four decades,” said Pierce Transit Board Vice Chair Marty Campbell. “It was great having Gov. Inslee here today to discuss how the transit industry is moving forward with battery-fueled technology and how the state of Washington can support us in those goals.”
While at Pierce Transit, Gov. Inslee received an in-depth briefing about electric buses, including the challenges and opportunities associated with electric buses. He also had the opportunity to ride one of the electric buses and hear about the agency’s plans to update its Lakewood base facilities to accommodate future electric vehicles and related infrastructure.
