Local Governments Say Yes to Electric Vehicles
CEC has long been on the front lines of advocating and developing infrastructure for a transition to electric vehicles in our region. This year has seen big strides with local governments adopting strategies to move their fleets to electric vehicles and to provide more charging access to employees and the public.
County of Ventura – In July, the Board of Supervisors approved the purchase of 14 electric vehicles and charging stations, and directed staff to further electrify the fleet and build workplace charging stations for their 8,000 employees. This progress dovetails with the work CEC did in 2018 to build a coalition of more than 23 organizations to develop an EV Ready Blueprint for Ventura County, particularly geared toward lower income and disadvantaged communities. The effort aims to be a replicable model for statewide transportation electrification.
County of Santa Barbara – The Board of Supervisors voted in March 2019 to only purchase electric vehicles for light duty vehicles in 2019. The staff also released an RFP to procure 50 charging stations, with exact location to be determined. Both actions work to help them reach targets set in the County Climate Action plan.
City of Santa Barbara –City staff are applying for funding to build 44 EV chargers – 14 for fleet use and 30 for public workforce charging – on top of the Granada Garage. If you’d like to support this project or are interested in monthly EV charging/parking, please email mchiacos@cecmail.org.
With the launch earlier this year of Electric Drive 805, another coalition led by CEC that is spearheading local efforts to increase access to affordable electric vehicles, we expect to see more moves to carbon-free transportation throughout our region. Want to learn more about how you can support these efforts? Contact CEC's Director of Climate and Energy Programs Michael Chiacos at mchiacos@cecmail.org