HOW TO START A CLEAN FUEL PROJECT:
Get project guidance or technical assistance from PRCC
DISCOVERY
learn about viable options
SITING AND/OR SPECIFICATION
establish critical baseline details
ENGAGEMENT
gather supporters
FUNDING
secure grants and other resources
IMPLEMENTATION
make your vision a reality
ASSESSMENT
review and report progress
OUR CURRENT PROJECTS:
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RESEARCH:CARNEGIE MELLON UNIVERSITY Holistic and Energy-efficient Rural County Mobility Platform (RAMP) – PRCC is participating with CMU on this project to develop, demonstrate, and refine affordable, accessible, sustainable, and replicable mobility service enabled alternative fuel vehicle ridesharing system and shuttle service applications in rural Greene County, Pennsylvania supported by dataset collection, analysis, sharing, and public dissemination of results. Learn more on the RAMP project webpage. WEST VIRGINIA UNIVERSITY VoiCE-MR: Vocation Integrated Cost Estimation for Maintenance and Repair of Alternative Fuel Vehicles (AFV) – PRCC and its stakeholders will participate with West Virginia University as they jointly propose a study to develop a tool to estimate the vocation dependent variations in maintenance cost (MC) of heavy- and medium-duty vehicles fueled by alternative fuels that include natural gas, propane, and electric.
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ADOPTION & TRANSITION:CALSTART Charge to Work USA: National Workplace Charging Program – a national outreach and engagement campaign to recruit public officials to pledge support and to champion our program locally to encourage WPC program adoption; marketing to recruit businesses and other workplaces to pledge to implement workplace charging programs and EVSE installations; employee engagement to translate WPC installations into EV adoption; employer recognition and WPC program certification; and robust data collection and reporting at state and national levels. PRCC is one of five Clean Cities Coalitions participating in this award. Visit the CALSTART Charge@Work website. DRIVE EV USA Drive Electric Pennsylvania Coalition (DEPA) - Drive Electric Pennsylvania is part of Drive Electric USA, a Department of Energy-funded project comprised of Clean Cities Coalitions, electric vehicle groups, and other committed partners from fourteen states. This project engages individuals, utilities, legislators, dealerships and others towards removing adoption barriers and accelerating plug-in electric vehicle use throughout the United States. PRCC is one of 17 Clean Cities Coalitions participating in this project. Learn more at www.driveelectricpa.org.
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INFRASTRUCTURE:FHWA – I-80 The I-80 Mid-America Alternative Fuel Corridor project was developed to help address and recognize potential alternative fueling opportunities along the Interstate 80 (I-80) from New Jersey to Iowa. The six-state collaborative, including: Illinois; Indiana; Iowa; New Jersey; Ohio and Pennsylvania seek to have all the necessary component infrastructure to make this interstate alternative fuel “ready” for Compressed Natural Gas(CNG) and electric vehicle (EV’s) travel. The proposed alternative fuel corridor was organized by Argonne National Laboratory and submitted to the FHWA by the Illinois Department of Transportation. PRCC is part of this award through the PA Department of Transportation. PA NEVI PROGRAM Signed by President Joe Biden in November 2021, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) provides states with $7.5 billion to help make EV charging more accessible to all Americans for local and long-distance trips. Over the first five years of the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program, Pennsylvania will receive $171.5 million in dedicated formula funding. The initial focus of this funding is for states to strategically deploy Direct Current Fast Charging (DCFC) stations along its designated Alternative Fuel Corridors (AFCs), to help build out the national EV AFC network. Once a state’s AFC network is “fully built out” according to FHWA criteria, then that state may use NEVI Formula Program funds for EV charging infrastructure on any public road or other publicly accessible location. The criteria for being "fully built out" indicates NEVI-compliant DCFC stations are both: a) no more than 50 miles apart along each AFC; and b) no more than 1 mile from the nearest AFC exit. PRCC is working with the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation and the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection to facilitate charging station build-out in gap areas and educational efforts that ready Pennsylvania drivers for the coming changes. Visit PennDOT’s webpage to learn more about the PA NEVI Formula Program.
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WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT:CCAC-WEST HILLS CAMPUS Alternative Fuels Curriculum Development – As the market for clean fuels continues to grow, workforce development is now more urgent than ever. CCAC has been a member of the National Alternative Fuels Training Consortium (NAFTC) since 2011. CCAC is one of nearly 50 National and Associate Training Centers located across the country. These centers are the only schools in the United States to offer the award winning, state-of-the-art NAFTC curricula and training. PRCC is working with CCAC, NAFTC and our Sustaining Members to support the continuation and evolution of this program. Opportunities exist to donate equipment, time or other resources; interested Stakeholders can also benefit from a variety of mini-workshops and courses hosted throughout the year.
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POLICY:TRANSPORTATION ENERGY PARTNERS Energy Independence Summit & Capitol Hill Day – Each year in February, PRCC joins with other Clean Cities Coalitions and interested Stakeholders in Washington DC for sessions with State and Federal lawmakers about the barriers to and needs for clean alternative fuels adoption and infrastructure. These sessions provide opportunities to learn about Federally sponsored funding initiatives, engage with leaders of emerging clean transportation programs, network with industry leaders around the latest technologies and strategies for advancing clean fuels, and meetings with House and Senate officials to communicate on the current state of clean fuels initiatives in Pennsylvania. Learn more on the Transportation Energy Partners website
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DATA COLLECTION:DOE Alternative Fuel Price Tracking and Reporting - Clean Cities Coalitions sponsored by the Department of Energy are required to collect and report local alternative and conventional fuel prices for the Alternative Fuel Price Report, a quarterly report that provides average national and regional retail U.S. fuel prices. The reporting collection takes place four times a year during the first 15 days of April, July, October, and January. For up-to-date fuel pricing data, please visit the Alternative Fuels Data Center’s Fuel Pricing page. DOE Alternative Fuel Station Verification - Clean Cities Coalitions are also required to provide reports to the Department of Energy about openings and closings of alternative fueling stations in their regions. These reports support the availability of up-to-date information in the DOE's Alternative Fueling Station Locator application. All stations, including private fleet, workplace, and multi-unit dwelling stations, in the Western Pennsylvania region should be reported by PRCC. When providing station information, data submission includes the following, at a minimum: fuel type(s), station name, street address, city, state, ZIP code, access type (i.e., public, or private), and station phone number or a point of contact that can answer questions about the station. PRCC Stakeholders throughout the region are invited to facilitate this information as it becomes available; more comprehensive information helps to ensure each station is added to the database in a timely manner. Station information can be emailed to coordinator@pgh-cleancities.org at any time. DOE Annual Report Data Collection - Clean Cities Coalitions annually report data to the Department of Energy concerning Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions and Gasoline Gallon Equivalency (GGE) reductions from transportation actions in the Western Pennsylvania region. If you are involved in alternative fuel or alternative fuel vehicle projects, information about your fleets and fuel usage is valuable to this annual reporting process and we welcome your involvement. Please email coordinator@pgh-cleancities.org for a data submission form to help us maintain an accurate understanding of the region's use of clean fuels.
SUCCESS STORIES
COMPLETED PROJECTS
GREENING LOCOMOTIVES INITIATIVE OF WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA
In 2016, PRCC secured funding from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) with its partner, the Carload Express, to install four Auxiliary Power Units on their locomotives. The verified idle reduction technology project brought $54,105 of EPA monies, displaced 437,000 gallons of diesel fuel and reduced 5,471 tons of emissions.
KEYSTONE STATE CNG GREEN INITIATIVE PROGRAM
In 2015, PRCC leveraged a PA DEP Alternative Fuels Incentive Grant with partner United Parcel Service (UPS), to purchase 9 compressed natural gas (CNG) trucks (valued at $225,000) to help the UPS fleets convert to CNG in Western Pennsylvania. This project utilized 9 new alternative fueled Class 8 Tractors that run on CNG at the New Stanton, PA area. The project displaced 117,684 gallons of diesel per year, which equates to 470,736 gallons for the 4 years required for this project.
WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA CNG CONVERSION INITIATIVE PROGRAM
In 2015 and 2014, PRCC received PA DEP Alternative Fuels Incentive Grants with partner United Parcel Service (UPS) for the purchase of 20 CNG trucks (valued at $500,000) to help the UPS fleets convert to compressed natural gas (CNG) in Western Pennsylvania. This project utilized 20 new alternative fueled Class 8 Tractors that run on CNG at the New Stanton, PA area. The project displaced 261,020 gallons of diesel per year which equates to 1,046,080 gallons for the 4 years required for this project.
WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA ALTERNATIVE SCHOOL BUS PROGRAM
In 2014, PRCC leveraged PA DEP Alternative Fuel Incentive Grant Funding to help 10 counties in Western Pennsylvania utilize 50 new school buses that run on propane. The goals and the objectives of the project were to provide air quality benefits to school children who ride these buses and fuel cost savings to those districts who utilize propane to replace diesel in their vehicles. This project aggregated 11 private bus companies and 1 school district (brought together by the Pittsburgh Region Clean Cities Western Pennsylvania Alternative Fuel School Bus Program) to purchase 50 propane school buses ($250,000). The project displaced 162,842 gallons of diesel per year and saved $2,749,051 in fuel and maintenance costs (25% savings) at current pricing and assumptions over 12 years.
