Sustainability and Energy Action Plan

TRANSPORTATION GRANTS PASS SUSTAINABILITY AND ENERGY ACTION PLAN could be for free at first, and then for a reduced rate, and eventually at market rate. Given the number of employees at the City with more sizeable commutes, vanpooling programs may be a good step beyond that of including carpooling for T -3-1 incentives. Putting a real effort into coordinating carpooling efforts by providing vans (preferably ZEVs ) and organizing vanpooling would likely prove to be even more effective. Employee survey data also suggests that physical resource provision (adding facilities like showers and bike storage to City work sites) might be important for supporting alternative commute options such as walking and biking. Another possible option for improving the accessibility of alternative commute methods istargeting the use of public transit. While current bus options are quite limited, offering bus passes may help some employees to reduce their commute emissions as well. Providing additional financial resources (like subsidies or no -/low-interest loans) for employee ZEV purchasing is another program employees expressed interest in. This can be done either directly through grant funding, or by establishing a partnership with local auto dealers to provide City employees with fleet pricing on ZEV purchases from those dealerships.T-3-2. Provide Resources to Employees to Improve Feasibility of Low Emission Commuting Incentivization of low emission commuting methods will not be sufficient if staff simply do not feel that these are feasible options for them. Efforts to improve the perceived feasibility include employee education, and the provision of both physical and financial resources. Educational efforts through programs and events like “Bike or Walk to Work Day," and bicycle and pedestrian safety education can help staff to feel more comfortable on the roads. Similarly, the City can promote ZEV adoption through employee education on both the emerging and currently available technology (many people may not be aware of just how far technology has come), and on the available financial incentives that are available from the state and federal government in support of purchasing ZEVs . Given the physical distances of many employee commutes, which reduces the convenience of other options, the only practical low emission commuting options for some employees will be carpooling and making the switch to ZEVs . Both these commute methods’ adoption by employees will likely depend on the provision of resources like emergency rides, EV charging, and a vanpooling program. A guaranteed ride home in case of emergency for employees who use alternate commuting methods (not single passenger vehicle), is recommended to increase employee comfort (with carpooling and vanpooling in particular). EV charging infrastructure for fleet vehicle use should already be installed at most, if not all, work sites, so all that would be needed to provide charging for employees is to allow employees to use City -owned charging infrastructure as it becomes available. This Work Site Facilities Vanpooling Emergency Rides ZEV Loans EV ChargingAlternative Commute Facilitation Preferences Number of employees expressing interest in alternative commute facilitation incentives.68 64