New York City Mayor Eric Adams has formally codified the city’s goal of transitioning its automobile fleet to all zero-emissions vehicles by 2038.
The legislation, Intro 279-A, requires all light- and medium-duty vehicles procured by the city after July 1, 2025, to be zero-emission vehicles, and it requires all light- and medium-duty vehicles in the city’s fleet to be zero-emission vehicles by July 1, 2035, with certain exceptions. It also requires all heavy-duty vehicles procured by the city after July 1, 2028, to be zero-emission vehicles and all heavy-duty vehicles in the city’s fleet to be zero-emission vehicles by July 1, 2035, with certain exceptions. Further, it requires that all motorcycles in the city’s fleet be zero-emission vehicles by July 1, 2035.
Additionally, Mayor Adams and New York City Department of Citywide Administrative Services (DCAS) Commissioner Dawn M. Pinnock announced an agreement that will bring four solar carports to New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) public housing parking lots.
The carports — canopies with solar panels to generate renewable energy — feature a storm-resilient design via an elevated battery to protect against flooding and are the first of their kind on NYCHA properties, according to a release. Further, the agreement includes the introduction of electric vehicle car-sharing for NYCHA staff through an online reservation system.
As of September 2022, DCAS had already reached its 2025 goal of transitioning 4,000 vehicles in the city fleet to electric vehicles (EV). The city operates over 4,800 EVs in its fleet and 1,805 charging stations throughout the five boroughs.
The new solar carports were installed this summer in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan and Queens. In total, NYCHA will have five DCAS solar carports on public housing campuses, including an earlier model placed at the Governor Alfred E. Smith Houses in Manhattan in 2017. In February 2023, DCAS announced the addition of 71 solar carports to its charging network. DCAS and NYCHA will add additional sites as the solar carport network continues to grow.
Electrification in New York
Earlier this month, the Federal Highway Administration approved New York State’s updated plan to use National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Program Funds to install and operate additional fast charging stations, clearing the way for the state to receive its next apportionment of $37.4 million to continue the buildout.
The approval comes as the State Department of Transportation and New York Power Authority entered into an agreement to allocate the first installment of NEVI funds — about $20 million — to close the remaining charging station gaps along major state highways. Under this agreement, the Power Authority will utilize its Evolve NY fast charging infrastructure program to identify potential locations and install charging facilities in at least 20 designated NEVI program gap areas along key state highways, with most expected to be completed by the end of 2024.
In 2022, New York legislators committed to achieving a fully electric statewide school bus fleet by 2035. The legislation aims for all new school bus purchases to be zero emission by 2027. It also requires that all buses in operation be electric by 2035.
The new law also required the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) to develop an electrification roadmap for New York’s school districts and provide technical support.
Earlier this year, NYSERDA released proposed eligibility guidelines for public comment for the Public School Bus Electrification Program being designed under the $4.2 billion Clean Water, Clean Air, and Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act of 2022. The draft criteria guiding at least $500 million for zero-emission school buses and infrastructure will assist municipalities applying for funding for projects meant to reduce pollution and provide cleaner air for children and communities.
The Public School Bus Electrification Program will be a state-wide point-of-sale voucher program that provides discounts to eligible school bus fleet operators that purchase or lease zero-emission battery electric or hydrogen fuel cell electric school buses and associated charging infrastructure.
