Earlier this year, Boise Mayor Lauren McLean and the City of Boise debuted the Climate Action Roadmap, an ambitious and detailed plan to reach carbon neutrality by 2050. Twenty-nine years might feel like a lot of time, but reaching this aggressive climate goal demands immediate action.
Thankfully, Boise is not wasting any time getting started on the high priorities. In fact, just last night in her annual State of the City address, Boise Mayor announced that the City will beat their clean energy commitment by 7 years! In partnership with Idaho Power, the City of Boise will surpass their original 100% clean energy by 2030 target set date.
Last month, the City of Boise joined Republic Services in debuting the first of five electric garbage trucks that will start routes in 2021. Next, Boise joined Valley Regional Transit in debuting their first four electric transit buses on Tuesday. Soon, Treasure Valley residents will be able to breathe clean air on their commute and our community will take another step towards electrifying our fleets.
As Mayor McLean explained, “As we imagine what a carbon-neutral city looks like in 2050, we know it will have to include clean public transit options…These electric buses will be an incredible asset to the VRT fleet.”
It’s clear that Mayor McLean and the City of Boise have the vision, ambition, and plan to electrify our grid and build out our EV infrastructure, but to accomplish these necessary goals in time to avert the worst impacts of climate change, local governments need federal investments.
TAKE ACTION: Thank Boise Mayor McLean and the Boise City Council for advancing bold climate action policy!
In addition to significant other climate investments, the Build Back Better Act can provide the necessary federal investments that Idaho communities need to expand our electric fleets, build EV infrastructure in rural communities, make electric vehicles affordable for all, expand our public transit, and ensure that every child can travel to school breathing clean air on an electric school bus.
Learn more about CVI’s work in partnering with local communities and school boards to electric school bus fleets in Idaho!