When the Collaborative launched, the program had an initial count of 22 cities and counties committed to purchasing 391 electric vehicles (EVs). In just one year, this cohort has grown nearly tenfold to include more than 160 cities, counties, public transit agencies, and port authorities that are committed purchasing to more than 2,400 electric vehicles. The Climate Mayors EV Purchasing Collaborative (the Collaborative) is a partnership between the Climate Mayors, the Electrification Coalition, and Sourcewell.
The Collaborative works to reduce the costs and barriers to electrifying fleets to make it easy for public fleets to go electric. The online portal provides municipalities with equal access to competitively solicited EVs and charging infrastructure, leasing options that can monetize state and federal tax credits, and staff and tools to provide fleet electrification technical support. The Collaborative also provides training, best practices, educational resources, and industry connections, creating a one-stop shop to support EV transitions for public fleets. This year, we are celebrating the significant progress we have made to advance EV fleet transitions since we launched the Collaborative last September.
The Collaborative team spent 2019 helping public agencies understand the benefits of EVs and making it easier for them to execute and implement their green fleet goals. Local governments throughout the country have been able to access the most popular vehicle models and reduce administrative time across the board by using the Collaborative.
A highlight from this year was the major announcement of commitments in June at the Climate Summit in Honolulu with Climate Mayors founder and chair, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti (@MayorOfLA); co-chairs Boston Mayor Marty Walsh (@marty_walsh) and Knoxville Mayor Madeline Rogero (@MayorRogero); and Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell (@MayorKirkHNL). Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti also received the Mayors’ Climate Protection Award at the U.S. Conference of Mayors Annual Meeting for the transformative work achieved by the Collaborative team.
Looking ahead, the Collaborative partners are focused on expanding the offerings through the platform, including (and going beyond) light-duty vehicles. An electric school bus procurement will be opening soon to national vendors. The portal is also poised to add transit buses and medium- and heavy-duty vehicles that are electric. In the short term, we are working to add equipment such as electric street sweepers to continue to reduce emissions and oil dependence. We will also be focused on expanding the reach of the Collaborative as we continue to gather commitments.
Please reach out to us at EVfleets@electrificationcoalition.org or call 800-267-7830 to find out more and join the cohort of leading cities that are expanding the transformative impact of the Collaborative!
Or check us out online to learn more.