MOTION TO PURSUE PAN-CANADIAN HARMONIZATION OF ELECTRIC BUS CHARGING TECHNOLOGY, TO REDUCE PROCUREMENT COSTS, IMPROVE PERFORMANCE AND INCREASE ADOPTION RATES OF ELECTRIC-BUS
TECHNOLOGY
Whereas the City of <name> and the Province of <name> have agreed to pursue green procurement policies for <transit system name> operations;
Whereas a consensus is forming across Canada on the need to reduce GHG emissions through new technologies;
Whereas Greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector primarily come from burning fossil fuel for buses cars and trucks as over 90 percent of the fuel used for transportation is petroleum based, which includes gasoline and diesel;
Whereas Canadian transit manufacturers are currently researching, developing and deploying new electric transit technologies that will offer significant emissions reductions;
Whereas costs for these new technologies are still out of reach for many Canadian municipalities, due in part to their slow rate of adoption across Canada;
Whereas a leading factor in the slow adoption of electric transit technologies is the lack of technological harmonization across municipalities and between transit manufacturers;
It is proposed by
Seconded by
That Council declare that it will pursue a coherent and sustained procurement policy with regards to electric bus charging technologies that is harmonized with other municipalities across Canada;
That Council request other municipalities join in this harmonization, with the goal of more quickly commercializing electric transit technologies, increasing their adoption and reducing urban GHG emissions in the transportation sector;
That Council urge transit manufacturers to create a Canadian standard for electric bus manufacturing, including but not limited to charging infrastructure.
