NEW YORK—Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced the addition of 70 new electric vehicles to the city’s fleet on Tuesday, at the Department of Sanitation Central Repair Shop in Queens.
New York City already has the largest municipal electric vehicle fleet, and this latest addition brings the total to 430 electric vehicles.
“This is the latest and largest-ever addition of electric vehicles to the city’s fleet, which is already the largest municipal clean-air vehicle fleet in the nation,” Bloomberg said. “We will continue to lead by example, but we also must provide New Yorkers with tools to make environmentally friendly choices in their own lives.”
As a part of the mayor’s PlaNYC green initiative, the city will continue to provide New Yorkers more information on electric vehicles. The city’s website, www.nyc.gov, now includes a Drive Electric NYC page that gives users basic facts on electric cars, a map of public charging stations, and a cost calculator that will help owners compare total costs between owning and fueling an electric vehicle versus a gas-powered car.
The Mayor’s Office of Long-Term Planning and Sustainability and Nissan hosted a free electric car informational session at Central Park’s Naumburg Bandshell on Tuesday, followed by a screening of the documentary “Revenge of the Electric Car,” at 8:30 p.m.
A survey conducted by McKinsey & Company showed that only 30 percent of New Yorkers are knowledgeable about the benefits and limitations of electric vehicles, but 21 percent would be more likely to purchase one if educated about the facts.
Bloomberg said the new vehicles will replace old cars that needed to be retired anyway, and a grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation and New York State Power Authority covered the difference between the cost of electric and gas-powered vehicles. The U.S. Department of Energy provided charger manufacturer Coulomb with a grant to provide public charging stations throughout the city.
Most of vehicles can also run on fuel, but agencies estimate that these vehicles will drive about 35 miles a day, and run on only electrical power. The vehicles will also require fewer replacement parts and last longer than gas-powered vehicles would.
The Chevrolet Volt’s “extended range” hybrid makes up 50 of the new vehicles, 10 are fully electric Ford Transit Connect cargo vans, and 10 are new fully electric Navi-star “E-star” utility trucks.
“And driving these vehicles will produce none of the tailpipe pollution gas-powered vehicles do, … and we will reduce greenhouse gases,” Bloomberg said. He says the plan is to have electric vehicles representing 0.6 percent of total energy consumption by 2015.
The city is also working toward fully electric taxis, and Nissan will be providing six Nissan LEAFs for testing in 2012, as a part of the New York City Taxi of Tomorrow pilot program.
New York City already has the largest municipal electric vehicle fleet, and this latest addition brings the total to 430 electric vehicles.
“This is the latest and largest-ever addition of electric vehicles to the city’s fleet, which is already the largest municipal clean-air vehicle fleet in the nation,” Bloomberg said. “We will continue to lead by example, but we also must provide New Yorkers with tools to make environmentally friendly choices in their own lives.”
As a part of the mayor’s PlaNYC green initiative, the city will continue to provide New Yorkers more information on electric vehicles. The city’s website, www.nyc.gov, now includes a Drive Electric NYC page that gives users basic facts on electric cars, a map of public charging stations, and a cost calculator that will help owners compare total costs between owning and fueling an electric vehicle versus a gas-powered car.
The Mayor’s Office of Long-Term Planning and Sustainability and Nissan hosted a free electric car informational session at Central Park’s Naumburg Bandshell on Tuesday, followed by a screening of the documentary “Revenge of the Electric Car,” at 8:30 p.m.
A survey conducted by McKinsey & Company showed that only 30 percent of New Yorkers are knowledgeable about the benefits and limitations of electric vehicles, but 21 percent would be more likely to purchase one if educated about the facts.
Bloomberg said the new vehicles will replace old cars that needed to be retired anyway, and a grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation and New York State Power Authority covered the difference between the cost of electric and gas-powered vehicles. The U.S. Department of Energy provided charger manufacturer Coulomb with a grant to provide public charging stations throughout the city.
Most of vehicles can also run on fuel, but agencies estimate that these vehicles will drive about 35 miles a day, and run on only electrical power. The vehicles will also require fewer replacement parts and last longer than gas-powered vehicles would.
The Chevrolet Volt’s “extended range” hybrid makes up 50 of the new vehicles, 10 are fully electric Ford Transit Connect cargo vans, and 10 are new fully electric Navi-star “E-star” utility trucks.
“And driving these vehicles will produce none of the tailpipe pollution gas-powered vehicles do, … and we will reduce greenhouse gases,” Bloomberg said. He says the plan is to have electric vehicles representing 0.6 percent of total energy consumption by 2015.
The city is also working toward fully electric taxis, and Nissan will be providing six Nissan LEAFs for testing in 2012, as a part of the New York City Taxi of Tomorrow pilot program.
