Commuters in the San Francisco area can feel even better about taking public transport to lower their carbon footprints, as the Bay Area’s Rapid Transit (BART) system will soon be powered by 100 percent renewable energy.

Days ago, the BART board of directors passed an electrical portfolio policy that requires 50 percent of the organization’s power to be sourced from renewables by 2025. By 2045, the electric train system is expected to run on 100 percent renewable energy.

As Digital Trends reports, this move has far-reaching implications for the entire region since BART consumes roughly 400,000 megawatt-hours annually – the equivalent of a small city like Alameda.

“Every day, BART takes cars off the road and helps drive down our greenhouse gas emissions,” saidBART Director Nick Josefowitz. “But especially now, BART and the Bay Area must shoulder even more responsibility to combat climate change. Even though BART is not required to comply with the state’s renewable energy standards, we have committed to purchasing 100 percent renewable electricity and taking a leadership role in decarbonizing our transportation sector.”

The train system already runs on a variety of renewable energy sources, including solar, wind and small hydroelectric facilities. Additionally, carbon emissions have been cut by lowering the number of single occupant automobiles sitting in traffic on the Bay Bridge each morning.

Sustainability Director Holly Gordon said of the progressive initiative, “We’re doing this to advance clean energy, but we’re also doing this because we think it is cost effective. We feel as though we can purchase clean energy while maintaining low and stable costs for the district as well.”

BART may very well be the first electrified public transit system to commit to running on 100 percent renewable energy – at least in the US. 

Article from inhabitat.com

by Amanda Froelich