“In 2018, Harvard set a goal to eliminate the use of fossil fuels on its campus by 2050 and to achieve fossil fuel-neutrality by 2026. To achieve this, the University made a commitment that all Harvard-owned vehicles will operate without fossil fuels.
Taking a major step toward that goal, the University recently purchased four 100 percent electric buses and electric infrastructure. The new buses will replace four, similarly sized bio-diesel powered vehicles representing more than 30 percent of Harvard’s fleet.
‘We’re always looking for ways to improve the efficiency and sustainability of our fleet,’ said John Nolan, managing director for Transportation Services. ‘This is a transformational project that can have a tremendously positive impact in the community and significantly move the needle towards a more sustainable future.’
Each year, the fleet transports approximately 600,000 students across Harvard’s campus and the transition to electric is expected to lower greenhouse gas emissions by more than 220,000 pounds annually. Harmful air pollutants will also be reduced providing health benefits to local communities.
‘Motor vehicles are a large source of NOx emissions, which lead to fine particulate matter (PM) pollution in the atmosphere,’ said Elsie Sunderland, Gordon McKay Professor of Environmental Chemistry at Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. ‘These emissions are especially a problem in dense urban areas with lots of traffic. Exposure to fine PM has been directly associated with premature mortality and a suite of other adverse health effects.
‘I am thrilled to see Harvard modeling the pathway to electric bus fleets to improve public health and address climate change as part of the broader commitment to be fossil fuel-free by 2050,’ added Sunderland, who is also a professor of environmental science and engineering at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
‘Harvard takes its responsibility of being a good neighbor seriously,’ added David Harris, director of Transit & Fleet Management. ‘One of the great things about this project is that the buses will produce much less noise and operate far more smoothly as they navigate the densely populated streets of Cambridge and Allston.’”
View the whole story here: https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2021/02/electric-buses-put-harvard-on-road-to-fossil-fuel-free-future/