King County Council approves zero-emission metro fleet by 2035

The King County Council unanimously approved on Tuesday the conversion of metro buses and other county vehicles to be all electric by 2035.

“With the passage of this ordinance, we have provided a much needed ‘jump start’ toward our effort to significantly reduce and eliminate carbon emissions from our county’s fleet,” said Councilmember Jeanne Kohl-Welles, sponsor of the ordinance. “This will not be an easy task. But we are running out of time and the climate crisis is only worsening. It is up to us to lead by showing the rest of the nation and world that we can transition to all-electric by utilizing the best available technology and by setting tough but achievable goals.”

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The plan speeds up the previously set timeline for an zero-emission fleet by five years. Metro expects to have more than 2,000 battery-electric and electric trolley buses in use over the next 20 years, according to its website.

“As written, this ordinance does not direct Metro to retire buses early. It does set ambitious targets. It will be up to Metro to determine how it achieves those targets,” Kohl-Welles said. “Clearly, meeting these targets will require a significant transformation to the fleet and the supporting infrastructure. And this is needed now because we are facing a crisis. A crisis that is only worsening.”

King County Metro says electric buses produce no exhaust, less noise, and have lower operating costs, eliminating greenhouse gas emissions and improving air quality. Currently, there are 185 zero-emission buses in the fleet, including 174 electric trolley buses on overhead wires and 11 battery-electric buses.

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Other King County-owned vehicles will be converted to electric as part of the accelerated plan, and more charging infrastructure will be added to county facilities to accommodate the new vehicles.