March 19, 2011
New Orleans Provides Green Transportation (Text Version)
This is a text version of the video segment New Orleans Provides Green Transportation, which aired on March 19, 2011.
JOHN DAVIS: Our success story this week profiles the New Orleans Regional Transit Authority. Since 1835, the St. Charles Avenue electric street cars have been a constant presence in the city, providing green transportation long before it was fashionable.
A $20 million expansion plan is under way to broaden the surface to other areas around the city. RTA's commitment to incorporate green technologies also includes 152 buses that run on biodiesel year round and 5 new hybrid bindi buses with more on the way. Much of the agency's old bus fleet was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina.
JUSTIN AUGUSTINE: If we're going to be a significant player in the community in which we serve, we have to protect our community. And we feel, by switching to biodiesel, helps us with our NOx emissions and our just clean air transmissions back to the community.
JOHN DAVIS: With their current fleet logging close to 6 million miles a year, RTA's goal is to provide all of the Crescent City cleaner, smarter transit.