In partnership with the Climate Mayors Electric Vehicle Purchasing Collaborative, Lehigh has joined 10 other universities and colleges and 225 fleets around the country in pledging to purchase a total of almost 3,800 electric vehicles.
Currently, Lehigh has one electric bus, one all-electric vehicle, two all-electric golf carts, and two hybrid police vehicles. Two more all-electric vehicles and one additional hybrid police vehicle are in the process of being purchased. Lehigh's partnership with the Collaborative demonstrates the university's dedication to working together to cut greenhouse gas emissions, improve inequitable public health outcomes directly linked to proximity to poor air quality, and reduce the nation’s dependence on oil through transportation electrification.
The electric vehicle fleet commitments through the Collaborative include:
• Saving nearly 28 million tons of CO2 emissions annually
• Avoiding 1.7 million gallons of gas per year
• Representing a total $123.5 million investment in electric vehicles
"Lehigh is committed to implementing transportation fleet changes that build a campus community for the 21st century," said Katharine Targett Gross, Lehigh’s sustainability officer. "Over the last few years, Lehigh has added an all-electric bus and several electric vehicles to its fleet. By joining the Climate Mayors Electric Vehicle Purchasing Collaborative, Lehigh is making a public commitment to continue sustainable transportation purchasing into the future. Electric and other zero emission vehicles are an integral part of meeting Lehigh's 2030 sustainability goals.”
Said Ben Prochazka, national director of the Electrification Coalition: “Universities and colleges help develop the future leaders of tomorrow. They are always at the forefront of creating ambitious climate and sustainability goals; it only makes sense that they become a part of the Collaborative and the transportation electrification future.”
Launched in September 2018, the Collaborative is a partnership between Climate Mayors, the Electrification Coalition and Sourcewell. In committing to purchase electric vehicles as a part of the Collaborative, public agencies, colleges and universities gain access to competitively solicited electronic vehicles and charging infrastructure, as well as innovative leasing options that allow fleets to reduce electric vehicle costs by accessing federal tax credits. The Collaborative also provides support with technical analysis and best practices for fleet electrification as fleets consider switching to electric.
