CREATING AN ACTIONABLE PLAN TO LOWER MUNICIPAL EMISSIONS

The Village of Ardsley is a small municipality in Westchester County serving a population of just over 5,000 people. The Village seeks to reduce its environmental impact by lowering the emissions produced by its municipal transportation fleet without negatively impacting its services. The Village's goal is to reduce vehicle emissions from its municipal fleet through policy changes that lower its reliance on fossil fuels. To understand the problem and identify feasible solutions, the team a) conducted a literature review, industry research, and interviews with village representatives, b) surveyed comparable municipalities on the benefits and challenges of electric vehicle adoption, and c) prepared a vehicle inventory report. The team provided the Village with a final report containing recommendations for decreasing its municipality’s vehicle emissions—ensuring its current fleet is performing efficiently, establishing infrastructure that supports emerging vehicle technologies, implementing a plan for future vehicle purchases, and providing recommendations for alternative policies that can reduce emissions.