Issue 2 | March 28, 2019
Caltrans Sustainability News
Zero-Emission Vehicles (ZEVs) Update
ZEVs in California
ZEVs are an essential part of our state's climate strategy, as well as a vital component of the effort to eliminate harmful auto exhaust. Transportation is a dominant source of carbon emissions in California—1/3 of those emissions being from tailpipes. By increasing the number of clean vehicles on the road through widespread adoption of ZEVs, California will take a critical step towards reaching our statewide goals of improving air quality and reducing the transportation sector’s climate impacts.

ZEV Workplace Charging Installations
The Department has actively pursued workplace Electric Vehicle charging installations through a partnership with Electrify America, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Volkswagen that was created to implement settlement agreements with California and other states. Electrify America, via its contractor EV Connect, has committed to install 314 Level 2 charging stations at eligible workplace sites. Full implementation of these sites is expected by June 30, 2019.

Table 1. Caltrans / EV Connect Workplace Charging Stations
Pictured: ZEV charger from District 4
Caltrans, in collaboration with the Department of General Services and the Government Operations Agency, is working on identifying future funding for an additional 700 ports across Caltrans workplace sites.
Best Practice: Overcoming Siloes to Grow a Culture of Sustainability in District 5 (Central Coast)
This section celebrates the outstanding sustainability work in our Caltrans districts and will feature an activity each issue; content provided in support for this issue from District 5's Aileen Loe and John Olejnik.
In an organization as large as Caltrans, progress on interdisciplinary issues like sustainability are a particular challenge. District 5 has a best practice for overcoming the challenge of often-siloed priorities.
 
Every two months, at the recurring District 5 Branch Managers meeting, one Division per meeting (assigned on a rotational basis) gives a presentation about sustainability. The intention is to involve everyone in exploring how they contribute to sustainability and to inspire each other in new ways. This practice provides opportunities for the various units to showcase their work. It also ties everyone together in promoting unique and valuable ways to carry out the Caltrans mission.
 
The idea originated in 2016/17 when District Director Tim Gubbins and his executive team added an “innovation spotlight” to the agenda where Divisions took turns making presentations at the meetings regarding innovative ideas or programs that they are implementing with their work. Following the success of this model, the “Sustainability Corner” was introduced for 2018/19. With nine functional units, it takes about 18 months to complete the rotation on the Branch Managers meeting cycle.

Could this model work in your office to grow sustainability? Give it a try!
Sustainability News from Around the World

Throughout 2018/19 the Sustainability Program used the Department’s three sustainability priorities to help focus our efforts and link Department and state goals--to champion active transportation; advance clean fuels, vehicles, and materials; and, prepare for climate change and extreme weather. This section of the newsletter brings you news items from around the globe related to the three priorities.

*Disclaimer: The following content was curated by Jeff Woods, Sustainable Transportation Media Consultant. The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in the following linked articles belong solely to the authors of those articles, and not necessarily to Caltrans or its Sustainability Program.
Champion Active Transportation

An experimental program approved by Utah legislators would fund free transit for at most seven days over the next three years during days of bad air quality and inversion on the Front Range. During the free transit days, the Utah Division of Air Quality and the Utah Transit.. . (Salt Lake Tribune)

Many transit agencies around the country are losing riders but according to researchers at the University of Kentucky the drop couldn’t just be from service reductions, which mostly happened during the recession... (Curbed)

In the Netherlands, 25% of trips are made via bicycle, a higher proportion than any other country. But the Dutch still want to do better. The government is incentivizing bicycle commuting by allowing workers to claim about... (Huffington Post)

Advance Clean Vehicles, Fuels and Materials

After finding that Volkswagen AG used devices that allowed their diesel vehicles to pass inspections and release up to 40 times the allowed nitrogen oxide into the air, states were awarded settlement money. Maryland is set to... (Government Technology)

Transportation agencies and private companies all over the country and world are always working on more innovative and sustainable technologies. But Dutch architect Daan Roosegaarde believes that while we’re moving forward... (The Driven)

As part of the City of Seattle’s climate change strategy, Mayor Jenny Durkin is proposing that all new buildings be equipped with electric vehicle chargers. Every new single family residence... (Smart Cities Dive)
Prepare for Climate Change and Extreme Weather

When we hear about climate change in the news we often see stories of rising sea levels and raging storms, but there are smaller and perhaps more insipid effects as well. According to research from MIT, climate change... (Bloomberg)  

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio has unveiled a $10B plan to extend Manhattan's waterfront 500 feet into the East River in order to give the city more protection during big storms and rising seas. In 100 years, 20% of downtown ... (Curbed)

Kansas City has voted to change its municipal energy sources to renewable energy in an effort to make the city carbon free by 2020. They’ll accomplish this feat by also creating a 5 megawatt community solar installation... (Next City)
March was Caltrans’ First-ever Try Transit Month

In this video, Caltrans' Alisa Becerra takes employees through the time and cost saving benefits of using transit. 
 
While some employees had the opportunity to try transit for their first time this March, many DOT employees and Californians rely on transit as their primary mode of transportation. Improving service and quality for transit riders through an integrated statewide rail and transit system is a focus for Caltrans.
 
With a goal to double transit trips by 2020 from the baseline year of 2012, Caltrans Division of Rail and Mass Transportation is coordinating with partner agencies across the state to implement projects that improve rail and transit safety, efficiency, and connectivity statewide. By implementing the State Rail Plan Vision , of the projected total growth in California by 2040, 74 million daily VMT will be diverted from highways to rail, helping to manage on-road congestion and reduce GHG emissions. SB 1 provide s significant investment for this vision, including more than $700 million annually for rail and transit projects. These include, for example: deployment of zero-emission bus fleets to increase service and capacity on key routes across the state; new BART rail cars to increase frequencies and add train cars to improve efficiencies and decrease crowding; and investments for a statewide integrated travel smartphone application to allow riders to seamlessly plan and pay for a trip across multiple transit types.
Video production credit: Caltrans HQ Public Affairs Team; Video Reporting: Public Information Officer Alisa Becerra
Walk, Bike, Transit (WBT) Encouragement for Caltrans Employees

Recap of Try Transit month
At Caltrans headquarters, the WBT Encouragement Committee hosted three Try Transit events in March, promoted to 1,000+ employees, with participation from five Sacramento-area transit agencies. At these events, employees enrolled in local commute programs, received tutorials on how to purchase tickets and got comfortable with mounting their bike to a bus. Try Transit events were also held in District 7 (Los Angeles) among other districts. Thank you for participating!
Special Advisor to the Director Jim Davis enrolls in the transit Connect Card program with guidance from Kareniece Hannon
Emily Abrahams practices loading a bike onto the bus during a "Try Transit" tutorial
The WBT Encouragement Team rewards riders on "Transit to Work Day"
Source: SACOG
SAVE-THE-DATE
MAY IS BIKE MONTH (MIBM)

Now is the time to get your two-wheeler tuned up! May is National Bike Month, sponsored by the League of American Bicyclists and celebrated in communities from coast to coast. Established in 1956, National Bike Month is a chance to showcase the many benefits of bicycling and encourage more folks to giving biking a try.
 
The WBT Encouragement Committee is already gearing up for events throughout the month to celebrate bicycling and the changing culture around active transportation at Caltrans. Stay tuned for information on how to log bike trips and miles and for chances to win prizes during MIBM.
Planning a MIBM event?
We want to hear about it! Email WalkBikeTransitEvents@dot.ca.gov #bikemonth

Find MIBM promotional materials from the League of American Bicyclists to assist with leading events in your very own community to encourage bicycling!
Meet Aileen Loe, Sustainability Representative from San Luis Obispo, D5
Each issue, the newsletter will feature a District Sustainability Representative from California.
Advancing Clean Materials: How Caltrans is Re-using Old Tires in Pavement Mixes
Article published in the Winter 2019 Caltrans Mile Marker; Source: 2016 Crumb Rubber Report; Jason Probst, Strategic Planning Manager, Caltrans Division of Maintenance

Caltrans has again exceeded its state-mandated goal to use more ground-up "crumb" rubber from old tires in its asphalt paving mixes. Read about the progress the Department has made on tire recycling in the recently published Caltrans Mile Marker here.

"Caltrans’ research has shown that asphalt containing crumb rubber better resists reflective cracking than conventional asphalt pavement."
Seeking Contributions and Feedback

Contributions: The Caltrans Sustainability Program welcomes submittals of content for possible inclusion in our next issue, at  Sustainability@dot.ca.gov.

Feedback: We welcome your feedback. Did you find this issue informative? Would you like to see more of something? Let us know at Sustainability@dot.ca.gov.

Stay Connected
Contact Us
Caltrans Sustainability Program
1120 N St,
Sacramento, CA 95814
Sustainability@dot.ca.gov