Publications

Florida Electric Vehicle Roadmap

12/1/2020

In May 2019, the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services’ Office of Energy began working on a plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) roadmap for the state of Florida. This roadmap provides a comprehensive investigation into the status and needs of PEV charging infrastructure in Florida for the following three to four years. This roadmap identifies PEV charging infrastructure impacts on the electric grid, solutions for any negative impacts, areas that lack PEV charging infrastructure, best practices for siting PEV charging stations, and technical or regulatory barriers to expansion of PEV charging infrastructure. It also provides recommendations that address permitting, emergency evacuation needs, and education.

Authors: Smith Burk, K.; Groover Combs, A.; Kettles, D.; Reed, K.

Making Sense of Heavy-Duty Hydrogen Fuel Cell Tractors

12/1/2020

Hydrogen fuel cells are proposed as a viable zero-emission alternative to today’s diesel engines. The technology is evolving rapidly for heavy-duty tractors hauling freight in dry van and refrigerated trailers. A handful of prototypes are in testing today in North America, while limited production units are entering commercial service in Europe. This report provides an unbiased view of the potential for hydrogen fuel cell tractors, identifying where and why they make sense in the mix of future zero-emission solutions.

Notes:

This copyrighted publication can be accessed through North American Council for Freight Efficiency’s website.

Assessing the Potential for Low-Carbon Fuel Standards as a Mode of EV Support

12/1/2020

Low-carbon fuel standards (LCFS), which regulate the carbon intensity of fuels supplied to transportation, can provide long-term, durable funding for plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) infrastructure and PEV purchasing incentives as other policies such as rebates expire or are phased-down. This study assesses the role that a national LCFS program can play in accelerating the rate of light-duty passenger PEV and charging infrastructure deployment.

Authors: Kelly, C.: Pavlenko, N.

Electrification Assessment of Public Vehicles in Washington

11/30/2020

Washington State is positioned to cost effectively electrify nearly all public vehicles by the year 2035. With near-term policy action and targeted investments in infrastructure, the state can accelerate ongoing efforts to advance electric vehicles (EVs) and solidify its leadership position in the EV market in the United States. This assessment evaluates the electrification potential for all publicly owned vehicles in the State of Washington. It provides Washington with comprehensive, vehicle-specific electrification cost estimates both today and in the future along with actionable information on how to efficiently move forward with fleet electrification.

Authors: Satterfield, C.; Nigro, N.; Wood, E.; Jensen, J.; Smith, C.; Desai, R.; Lepre, N.; Ge, Y.

Federal Best Practices: Core Principles of Sustainable Fleet Management

11/2/2020

This document is designed to help agency fleet managers understand and implement optimal petroleum reduction strategies for each fleet location by evaluating the most appropriate combination of the four core principles of sustainable fleet management: right-sizing the fleet to agency mission by implementing a vehicle allocation methodology study; minimizing vehicle miles traveled; increasing fleet fuel efficiency by replacing inefficient vehicles with more fuel-efficient vehicles, maintaining vehicles, driving more efficiently, and avoiding excessive idling; and optimizing cost-effective alternative fuel use, including maximizing use of existing alternative fuel infrastructure, installing alternative fuel infrastructure where practical (including electric vehicle charging stations), and aligning deployment of alternative fuel vehicles with fueling infrastructure.

Authors: Bentley, J.; Hodge, C.

Federal Workplace Charging Program Guide

11/2/2020

The Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act authorizes the installation, operation, and maintenance of electric vehicle (EV) charging equipment for the purpose of charging privately owned vehicles (POVs) under the custody or control of the General Services Administration or other federal agencies. It requires the collection of fees to recover the costs of installing, operating, and maintaining this equipment and imposes reporting requirements. This model program guide reviews those requirements and describes when and how fees may be required to cover costs of electricity, network costs, EV charging equipment, and installations in various scenarios. This model program guide is designed to support federal agencies developing and refining workplace charging programs for employee POVs.

Fleet-Wide Electrification Impacts Assessment for the Valley Transportation Authority

11/1/2020

This report explores the long-term electrification opportunities for the Valley Transit Authority’s (VTA) transit bus fleet. It also explores the potential for transit bus electrification at VTA as well as the economic impacts of partial and complete electrification. Further, the report includes the optimal charging, operation and lowest capital and operating cost solution to achieve different levels of electrification to meet VTA’s existing routes.

Authors: Eichman, J.; Kotz, A.; Miller, E.; Kelly, K.; Ficenec, K.

Summary Report on Electric Vehicles at Scale and the U.S. Electric Power System

11/1/2020

Plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) can meet U.S. personal transportation needs using domestic energy resources while at the same time offering carbon emissions benefits. However, wide scale light-duty PEV adoption will necessitate assessment of and possibly modification to the U.S. electric power generation and distribution systems. This report gauges the sufficiency of both energy generation and generation capacity in the U.S. electric power system to accommodate the growing fleet of light duty PEVs.

Electrifying Freight: Pathways to Accelerating the Transition

11/1/2020

The U.S. economy is heavily dependent on the functionality of our freight and goods transportation services. Road freight transportation in the United States is projected to grow steadily in the coming decades, and electric vehicles (EVs) are emerging as a clean and cost-effective alternative. This report outlines the benefits of electric trucks, explains the major barriers impeding their production, sales, and deployment, and establishes the next steps that manufacturers, policymakers, fleet operators, and other stakeholders should take to facilitate and accelerate freight electrification.

Authors: Buholtz, T.; Burger, A.; Gander, S.; Nelson, B.; Prochazka, B.; Swalnick, N

Clean Cities Alternative Fuel Price Report, October 2020

10/15/2020

The Clean Cities Alternative Fuel Price Report for October 2020 is a quarterly report on the prices of alternative fuels in the U.S. and their relation to gasoline and diesel prices. This issue describes prices that were gathered from Clean Cities coordinators and stakeholders between October 1, 2020 and October 15, 2020, and then averaged in order to determine regional price trends by fuel and variability in fuel price within regions and among regions. The prices collected for this report represent retail, at-the-pump sales prices for each fuel, including Federal and state motor fuel taxes.

Table 2 reports that the nationwide average price (all amounts are per gallon) for regular gasoline has decreased 4 cents from $2.22 to $2.18; diesel decreased 8 cents from $2.48 to $2.40; CNG increased 3 cents from $2.15 to $2.18; ethanol (E85) decreased 3 cents from $1.99 to $1.96; propane decreased 1 cent from $2.74 to $2.73; and biodiesel (B20) decreased 6 cents from $2.35 to $2.29.

According to Table 3, CNG is equal in price to gasoline on an energy-equivalent basis, while E85 is $0.36 more than gasoline on an energy-equivalent basis.

Authors: Bourbon, E.

Confidence Report: Low Rolling Resistance Tires

10/1/2020

This report provides fleet leadership with a comprehensive overview of the total cost of ownership for low rolling resistance tires for improved fuel efficiency. It covers the many factors which a fleet must weigh in its decision-making process for tire purchasing. It includes a decision tree that fleets can use as they asses their own duty cycles, business models, supplier relationships, and other considerations.

Notes: This report is copyrighted and can be accessed through North American Council for Freight Efficiency.

Alternative Fuels Data Center and Related Technology Integration Tools

9/28/2020

The U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy's Vehicle Technologies Office (VTO) facilitates national coordination of the Clean Cities coalitions through its Technology Integration Program. VTO's Technology Integration Program supports a broad technology portfolio that can reduce transportation energy costs for businesses and consumers. Fleets, cities, and regions can use the tools featured in this guide to implement alternative fuels and advanced vehicles. Also learn how Clean Cities coalitions and their stakeholders across the country have used the tools.

2019 Fuel Cell Technologies Market Report

9/1/2020

This report provides an update on the status of the hydrogen and fuel cell industry, including deployments and demonstrations of various applications, as well as a snapshot of the business and governmental landscape for the year 2019. Supported by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office, it follows the format of prior market reports and provides a factual, unbiased view of the technology and market status.

Authors: Dolan, C.; Gangi, J.; Homann, Q.; Fink, V.; Kopasz, J.

2019 Fuel Cell Technologies Market Report

9/1/2020

This report examines global fuel cell and hydrogen trends during 2019, covering business and financial activities, federal programs, and aspects of the various market sectors for fuel cells which include transportation. The report also covers 2019 activities related to hydrogen production, power-to-gas, energy storage, and components used by fuel cell and hydrogen technologies.

Authors: Dolan, C.; Gangi, J.; Homann, Q.; Fink, V.; Kopasz, J.

Idling Reduction Technology Solutions for Class 1–8 Vehicles

9/1/2020

Formerly called “Compendium of Idling Reduction Equipment for Class 1–8 Vehicles,” this simplified resource is organized by vehicle operators’ stationary-power needs: Idle management; Heat only; Cooling only; Heat, cooling, and power (auxiliary power unit); Power take-off; Cargo refrigeration; and Wayside power/truck stop electrification. For each solution, the table describes applicable vehicle types (light-, medium-, heavy-duty, and trailer), whether the solution is powered by fuel or battery/electricity, and the EPA SmartWay verification status (applicable to heavy-duty vehicles only). Each product includes a hyperlink to the manufacturer for more information.

Authors: Patricia Weikersheimer