The Gov. Phil Murphy administration is releasing an additional $6 million investment to offset the cost of electric trucks in vulnerable communities in New Jersey, states Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Shawn M. LaTourette.
Leveraging proceeds from New Jersey’s participation in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), the investment will offset the cost of 16 new electric vehicles (EV) that include garbage trucks, dump trucks and ambulances.
“Gov. Murphy’s persistence in bringing clean energy, a green economy and climate change reduction strategies to the Garden State will enable us to confront environmental challenges head on,” Commissioner LaTourette states. “The range of vehicles to be purchased with this latest investment will also demonstrate a broad suite of successful electric vehicle applications in the northern, southern and central regions of New Jersey.”
The funding also includes an e-mobility project in Jersey City that will reduce vehicle miles traveled through an electric car sharing program.
This announcement furthers an ongoing commitment by the Murphy Administration to target available RGGI proceeds to overburdened communities, while also supporting Earth Week’s 2022 global theme of Invest In Our Planet. To date, funding from the federal Volkswagen settlement and RGGI auction proceeds have enabled the purchase of 362 electric trucks and buses statewide.
New Jersey is also eligible to compete for new funding available from the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act that will further fund the electrification of vehicles in the state. Further, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is expected to soon announce a $1 billion competitive grant for electric and alternative-fueled school buses. The U.S. Department of Transportation recently announced a $1 billion competitive grant for low- and zero-emission transit buses.
View a list of projects funded in this latest round of RGGI auction proceeds here.