Asher Joseph file photo
Winter: We're not on track for 2030. Elicker: That assessment's "premature."
New Haven is one step closer to one more electric garbage truck — but still under 10 percent of the way to its goal of a fully electric fleet by 2030.
Faced with high price tags and limited available technology, the city is approaching the goal vehicle by vehicle — and prioritizing some of the worst smog-emitters, by way of the electric garbage truck on the horizon.
At a full-board meeting on Jan. 7, the Board of Alders unanimously approved the city’s acceptance of a $184,070 Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) from the U.S. Department of Energy.
The city currently plans to use this funding to help purchase a small new electric trash vehicle suitable for park sanitation — a replacement for an existing city vehicle once it is no longer usable.
The grant, as well as a $40,000 federal incentive, would cover the cost increase of an electric trash vehicle compared to its diesel-powered counterpart.
Climate and Sustainability Director Steve Winter said in a phone interview on Monday that garbage trucks are a priority for electrification because of their outsized contribution to greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution compared to other vehicles.
Winter wrote in a letter to alders that “Connecticut DEEP estimates that while medium and heavy duty vehicles make up 6 percent of vehicles on the road, they account for up to 53 percent of smog-forming nitrogen oxide emissions and 25 percent of transportation related greenhouse gas emissions.”
Garbage trucks are the “most heavily used diesel-powered vehicles” that the city owns, he added.
East Rock Alder Anna Festa, who chairs the City Services and Environmental Policy Committee, pointed out before the alders’ vote that the electric vehicle is expected to incur lower maintenance and energy costs compared to its gas-powered counterpart.
“In addition to the reduction in air pollution, the city should realize significant savings in operating costs as well,” she said.
New Haven currently has one (slightly larger) electric refuse truck, but the vehicle’s rollout has been delayed due to some mechanical hiccups.
Specifically, a braking kit had to be installed so that the truck could safely drive on an incline; the dealer is now getting some associated electrical problems addressed.
The setbacks with this first truck led the city to hold back on an opportunity that arose last year to buy a second garbage truck, Winter said at a City Services and Environmental Policy alder committee meeting in December.
The EECBG opportunity means that “if we continue to use the [first] refuse vehicle and it meets our expectations, then we have the ability to use this funding to help cover the incremental cost for a second one,” Winter told the alders.
Still, Winter said, “we’re not 100% sure that we are ready to get a refuse vehicle at this time.”
As a backup plan, if the existing trash truck continues to operate below standard, the federal grant is able to cover other kinds of municipal electric vehicles, such as police cars. The city can use the grant funding until mid-2026.
10% Of The Way To 2030 Goal
Hudson County Motors' BYD 6R
New Haven's second garbage truck could look something like this... as long as the first garbage truck starts working.
Any vehicles purchased by the grant would join 44 Chevy Bolts now in use by the city, an electric police car currently used for traffic enforcement, an electric Board of Education maintenance van, and the existing electric refuse truck.
While the city has set a goal of electrifying its buildings and transportation systems by 2030, including in a resolution proposed by Winter himself, Winter said that “as of now, we are not on pace to meet that ambitious goal.”
Mayor Justin Elicker offered a different take: “Given that that goal is still five years out, it’s premature to say we’re not on track,” he said.
But he noted that as Donald Trump prepares to take office as president this month, the future of federal incentives that help fund the purchase of electric vehicles is now in question. “With Trump taking office, I have a lot of concerns about our ability to reach that goal.”
Winter estimated that out of the city’s over 600 vehicles, the portion that are electric is “approaching 10 percent.”
One reason that percentage is not higher is that so many of the city’s trucks and cars — from fire engines to snow ploughs — are highly specialized.
“Either the technology is not there or the technology is not tested enough” for the city to purchase alternatives to many gas-powered city vehicles, said Elicker.
Another reason, Winter said, is that for vehicles that do have electric options, such as school buses, “it’s a matter of figuring out how to meet the higher price point.” The city has relied on federal incentives and grants to fund its existing electric fleet.
Elicker said that the city is so far sticking to its goal of electrification by 2030. “The technology is changing so quickly,” and there are five years left until that self-imposed deadline, he said. In general, “our goal is to do as much as we possibly can.”
Still, he said, “the trash truck is a great example of why it’s tricky.”