Best Practice Action 13.6
GreenStep City Best Practices: Transportation
Efficient City Fleets No. 13
Implement a city fleet investment, operations and maintenance plan.
Best Practice Action Detail
Best Practice Action 6
Retrofit city diesel engines or install auxiliary power units and/or electrified parking spaces, utilizing Project GreenFleet or the like.
- Despite high initial cost, battery-electric buses deliver lowest life-cycle costs to city transit fleets.
- Project GreenFleet is a collaborative effort, led by Environmental Initiative, with business, government agencies and non-profit organizations, to improve air quality and protect public health by reducing emissions from Minnesota's diesel-fueled heavy construction vehicles.
- What’s an auxiliary power unit (APU)? See Electric auxiliary power units as truck driver retention equipment (Fleet Equipment Mag, 2020)
 |
Retrofit several city diesel engines. Report participation of businesses and involvement in the U.S. EPA's SmartWay Transport program under BPA 23.3. |
 |
Retrofit all exhaust systems of city heavy-duty diesel truck models with diesel oxidation catalysts or filters. |
 |
Install at least one auxiliary power unit or electrified parking space. |
Who's doing it
Coon Rapids -
Date action report first entered:
Date of last report update:
Year action initially completed: 2020
Implementation details:
The City has installed one electric vehicle charging station 2020 at City Hall, as well as one charging station at the City Ice Arena.
Outcome measures/metrics/money saved:
Descriptive File:
Descriptive links:
For more information contact:
Colleen Sinclair (City staff) | csinclair@coonrapidsmn.gov | 763-767-6485
Partners:
Eden Prairie -
Date action report first entered:
Date of last report update:
Year action initially completed: 2023
Implementation details:
The city has installed 8 public Level 2 charging ports across a number of heavily utilized city parks and facilities for use by the public. The city has also installed 24 Level 2 charging ports to support electric city fleet vehicles now and in the future.
Outcome measures/metrics/money saved:
Descriptive File:
Descriptive links: https://www.edenprairie.org/community/sustainable-eden-prairie/energy/electric-vehicles
For more information contact:
Jennifer Fierce (City Staff) | jfierce@edenprairie.org | 952-949-8313
Partners:
Edina -
Date action report first entered:
Date of last report update:
Year action initially completed: 2021
Implementation details:
As part of the City's (Green) Fleet Purchasing Policy, listed in Phase 2--Purchase Clean Technology, the Fire Department (via goals) aims to adopt new technology, including the installation of auxiliary power units (APUs) to their fleet vehicles to aid in energy efficiency.
Outcome measures/metrics/money saved:
Descriptive File: view file
Descriptive links:
For more information contact:
Grace Hancock (City Staff) | ghancock@edinamn.gov | (952)826-1621
Partners:
Brooklyn Center -
Date action report first entered:
Date of last report update:
Year action initially completed:
Implementation details:
All new mobile engines and generators are replaced with Tier 4 Diesel engines
Outcome measures/metrics/money saved:
Descriptive File:
Descriptive links:
For more information contact:
Andrew Hogg (City staff) | ahogg@ci.brooklyn-center.mn.us | 763-569-3327
Partners:
Saint Paul -
Date action report first entered:
Date of last report update:
Year action initially completed:
Implementation details:
The City of Saint Paul has worked with Project GreenFleet and Donaldson in order to retrofit trucks with DOC units in order to reduce particulate emissions.
Outcome measures/metrics/money saved:
Descriptive File:
Descriptive links:
For more information contact:
Partners:
Austin -
Date action report first entered:
Date of last report update:
Year action initially completed:
Implementation details:
Palmer Bus Service retrofitted about 20 buses, contacted City, Utilities, and County to get vehicle inventory
Outcome measures/metrics/money saved:
This is in progress at the time of this post.
Descriptive File:
Descriptive links:
For more information contact:
Janet Anderson (Community volunteer) | janetanderson2840@gmail.com | 5072190680
Partners: Palmer Bus Service, Mower County, Austin Utilities, Project Green Fleet
Burnsville -
Date action report first entered:
Date of last report update:
Year action initially completed:
Implementation details:
Burnsville participates in Project GreenFleet. To date, 4 city diesel engines have been retrofitted. Eleven engines have systems ordered and these will be installed in the near future. Within the next few months, every city vehicle that is less than Tier 3 will have an upgraded emission system.
Outcome measures/metrics/money saved:
Descriptive File:
Descriptive links:
For more information contact:
Partners:
Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe -
Date action report first entered:
Date of last report update:
Year action initially completed:
Implementation details:
Leech lake has retrofitted 65 buses, 25 DOCs, 2 DMFs and 4 re-powers.
Outcome measures/metrics/money saved:
Descriptive File:
Descriptive links:
For more information contact:
Brandy Toft (Community volunteer) | air@lldrm.org | 218-335-7429
Partners:
Maplewood -
Date action report first entered:
Date of last report update:
Year action initially completed:
Implementation details:
Through the grant Clean Diesel Grant from the MPCA, Maplewood was able to retrofit four of the city's older diesel engine trucks. This will help fund for the purchase and installation of oxidation catalysts as of summer 2011. The city has also switched their diesel fleet from B2 biodiesel to a B5 biodiesel mixture in the winter with B10 biodiesel in the summer.
Fleet will be replacing all older diesel trucks for newer vehicles that have pre-installed Oxidation Catalysts within the next two years.
Fleet will be replacing all older diesel trucks for newer vehicles that have pre-installed Oxidation Catalysts within the next two years.
Outcome measures/metrics/money saved:
Descriptive File: view file
Descriptive links:
For more information contact:
Scott Schultz (City Staff) | scott.schultz@maplewoodmn.gov | (651) 249-2430
Partners:
Rochester -
Date action report first entered:
Date of last report update:
Year action initially completed:
Implementation details:
Green Fleet a few years back and retro fitted 8 pre- filter Detroits Diesels. Since then we have updated the fleet with all new diesel technologies with filters as standard. The 2010 also have an after burn system using urea. The fleet uses B5 5% soybean.
Outcome measures/metrics/money saved:
Descriptive File:
Descriptive links:
For more information contact:
Anthony Knauer (City staff) | tknauer@rochestermn.gov | 3282401
Partners:
Woodbury -
Date action report first entered:
Date of last report update:
Year action initially completed:
Implementation details:
As of May 2013, Woodbury is in the process of using the MPCA DERA (Diesel Emissions Reduction Act) grant to retrofit four dump trucks with an up-graded exhaust muffler.
Outcome measures/metrics/money saved:
Descriptive File:
Descriptive links:
For more information contact:
Jennifer McLoughlin (City staff) | jmcloughlin@ci.woodbury.mn.us | 651-714-3522
Partners: