New York Power Authority Clean Transportation Update                              September 2007

Greetings from the New York Power Authority!

Welcome to another edition of the New York Power Authority’s (NYPA) Clean Transportation Update. We wanted to share a few highlights from our year thus far… 

Heavy Duty Trucks Ease up on Emissions

We’re always on the look-out for projects or places that represent the best fit for demonstrating emerging technologies in electric or hybrid electric vehicles—projects small enough to control and big enough to have an impact.  We think we really found a winner when we teamed up recently with Charmer Sunbelt—the largest beverage distributor in the US, to retrofit trucks! 

We helped retrofit two of Charmer’s heavy-duty diesel-fueled trucks with hybrid electric drives systems and in January, they went into full-service handling beverage deliveries throughout New York City and western Nassau County.  The trucks typically log about 10-20 thousand miles a year. 

Heavy-duty trucks are essential to our nation’s economic viability, but they are also a substantial source of air pollution and other environmental problems--responsible for one-quarter of smog-causing pollution from highway vehicles and over one-tenth of America's oil consumption. 

But these trucks stand out.  They are the trucks NOT coughing up clouds of black soot.  The hybrid systems are expected to reduce their fuel consumption by 35 percent, their emissions of hydrocarbons by 76 percent, carbon monoxide by 77 percent, nitrogen oxides by 39 percent and particulate matter by 64 percent.  

Airport Ground Support Gets Hybrid Electric Support

As far as niche applications are concerned, we know we have a winner with our Ground Support Electrification Project at LaGuardia Airport’s Marine Air Terminal because the project won an Environmental Quality Award from the EPA in April.  

Working with Delta Airlines, we facilitated and financed the retirement of their entire fleet (15 pieces) of ground support equipment and replaced it with seven electric baggage carriers, six electric belt loaders, two electric aircraft tractors. We also installed a computer-controlled rapid battery charging system.  The project resulted in a 98 percent annual reduction of emissions and removes 19.2 tons of harmful emissions from the air each year.  

We’re currently working on similar projects at three additional New York airports. That means airline travelers and airport personnel can breathe a lot easier. Can battery-powered airplanes be far behind? 

The Numbers Speak Volumes (of gasoline saved..)

An end of the year report issued by our Clean Transportation group, confirms that we are leading proponents of electric-drive technologies.   

Since we started our Electric Transportation program in the 1990s, we have placed more than 850 vehicles in service with our customers and with our own fleet (approximately 500 are in use currently). These vehicles have traveled a total of 6.5 million miles and are in use in 33 of New York State’s 62 counties.  In most instances, the all-electric and hybrid-electric vehicles replace conventional vehicles. 

An independent analysis of our program by M.J. Bradley and Associates calculated reductions in carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and vehicle fuel use.  Based on those calculations, since the inception of the program, NYPA estimates its electric-drive vehicles have reduced CO2 emissions by more than 3,000 tons and saved 21,000 barrels of crude oil—which translates into gasoline savings of almost 400,000 gallons.  (See our entire 2006 Electric Vehicle Summary Report for more details).

We’re currently at work on a number of other exciting electric transportation projects, which we can’t wait to tell you about. Stay tuned for our next update.