GRTC is a member of the Virginia Clean Cities (VCC) coalition, which over the years has hosted a variety of workshops, webinars and other training opportunities for fleets interested in transitioning to CNG. Another coalition member — the City of Richmond — inaugurated its fleet of CNG refuse haulers in 2011, which set the stage for GRTC’s transition. View the YouTube video to see how VCC helped the city implement its CNG fleet.
Alleyn Harned・Executive Director, Virginia Clean Cities
Long dedicated to making the switch to compressed natural gas (CNG), the Greater Richmond Transit Corp. (GRTC) kicked off its major CNG projects in 2012 with the purchase of dozens of new CNG vehicles, the conception of a CNG vehicle maintenance program and the construction of one of the largest CNG fueling stations in Virginia.
GRTC is a member of the Virginia Clean Cities (VCC) coalition, which over the years has hosted a variety of workshops, webinars and other training opportunities for fleets interested in transitioning to CNG. Another coalition member — the City of Richmond — inaugurated its fleet of CNG refuse haulers in 2011, which set the stage for GRTC’s transition. View the YouTube video to see how VCC helped the city implement its CNG fleet.
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In partnership with Sonny Merryman Inc., GRTC purchased 30 CNG cutaway ambulatory-assistance buses in 2013 and 2014 and anticipates purchasing a dozen more in 2015. The new buses boosted the number of alternative fuel vehicles in GRTC’s cutaway fleet to more than 50%.
GRTC has experienced very few service or support issues — and no major mechanical issues — with the new CNG cutaway buses, which operate in similar fashion to its diesel buses. The transit agency has received excellent support from Ford in handling warranty issues. GRTC mechanics are now being trained to work on CNG engines.
The smaller vehicles in the fleet —StarTrans with 6.8-liter engines — were converted to run on CNG by the manufacturer and Green Alternative Systems.
GRTC also partnered with Gillig on the purchase of 42 larger CNG buses during 2013 and 2014. The Gillig contract stipulates a five-year transitional purchase, which enables more favorable pricing for the transit agency. While only 28% (42 of 150) of GRTC’s larger buses currently run on CNG, the long-term vision is to move all 150 larger buses to CNG by 2024.
Until GRTC built its own CNG station, its vehicles refueled at the city-owned public station. Today GRTC’s CNG fleet fills up at its own CNG fueling station, which the transit agency designed and constructed in partnership with Trillium CNG.
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"This is a successful program,” said Charlie Mitchell, chief operating officer of GRTC. “The equipment is working, the city partnership is working and the savings due to the price of fuel are significant.”
In addition, GRTC received a grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation for a three-year bus-rapid-transit effort, which will move Richmond even further toward a more efficient and sustainable transportation future. Dedicated CNG buses, slated for operation on Broad Street in Richmond, will be equipped with traffic light pre-emption and other systems to enhance operation. GRTC and Richmond city officials have identified other non-transit vehicles that can be converted to CNG.
Sustainable transit continues to be a hot topic among city leaders and transit officials, but more often than not, equitability is left out of the conversation.
Volkswagen was found guilty and agreed to pay up to $14.7 billion to settle allegations of cheating emissions. As part of the lawsuit, Volkswagen is required to establish and fund an Environmental Mitigation Trust, known as EMT. Over the next 10 years, $2.9 billion from the VW settlement will fund environmental mitigation projects that reduce emissions of NOx.
Rating systems have become the currency of sustainability. The right sustainability ratings system provides an important third-party verification of your agency’s commitment to creating facilities that reduce carbon emissions, save water, create healthier work environments for your employees and have a positive impact on the communities they serve.
Everyone needs to take a mental and physical break at some point in the workday, whether they’ve been concentrating on a computer screen, the road, or the underside of a bus, truck or train car. The tricky part for transit agencies is that each of these activities takes place in different surroundings, lighting conditions, room temperature and noise levels. With that in mind, consider the following factors in your facility design.
Shifts are long and varying, and facilities are often inadequate for transit employees to truly recharge and stay sharp on the job. But it doesn’t have to be that way. The quality of the environment within facilities can be designed to support shift workers and those with jobs that don’t follow traditional 9-to-5 schedules. Two key elements that can be utilized to support vehicle operator health; creating spaces with adaptability for varied activities and quality lighting that supports the adaptability of the space.
Most transit facilities have a break room for operators to use between shifts — typically an artificially lit space with a TV, vending machines, and cafeteria-style tables and chairs. The trouble is, every person has a different way of relaxing. Besides exposure to daylight and nature, key components of wellbeing are social cohesion and a sense of empowerment. The key here then is to empower employees to choose the best way to relieve their own stress around shifts.
A health and wellness revolution is underway in America. Concurrently, there is a growing public health initiative to promote safer, more accessible recreation facilities and active transit options. Transit agencies are uniquely positioned in the overlap of these two movements. By promoting health and well-being, agencies have an opportunity to show leadership and innovation in a truly holistic approach to total worker health, while benefiting workforce productivity and happiness.
A long-time champion of cleaner, greener technologies, the Riverside Transit Agency (RTA) has provided public bus service to California’s Western Riverside County since 1977.
