Philadelphia plans to transition its municipal fleet to mostly electric vehicles as part of a plan for city operations to be carbon neutral by 2050, according to a report in Government Technology.
The move by Philadelphia reflects the evolving electric vehicle landscape which includes a continuously expanding selection of vehicle options, battery types, and use cases, the report says.
“We like to lead by example, where we can,” said Christine Knapp, director of the Office of Sustainability in Philadelphia. “We don’t like to be asking others to take actions that we ourselves aren’t ready to do.”
Transportation makes up 13 percent of Philadelphia’s carbon emissions. The city operates some 5,500 vehicles.
Deploying the needed charging infrastructure will be a more significant challenge than simply changing buying habits.
“That’s really the critical piece of all this,” said Knapp.
Rolling out the needed charging infrastructure becomes a citywide coordination when considering the charging units are generally attached to buildings, which in turn may need electric load upgrades.
Source GovTech.com
