HART Celebrates Earth Day Showing Public Transit is Green

At HART, every day is Earth Day. From its vehicles, to our maintenance facility, to the CNG fueling facility, to its administrative offices, HART is driven to go green. The agency is celebrating Earth Day 2015 by highlighting some of the things HART has accomplished as part of the agency's sustainable, proactive commitment to the environment. That approach is reflected throughout the agency and its policies and procedures, as evidenced by a variety of earth-friendly initiatives, systems, and technologies.

Here are just some of the green steps HART is taking:

• HART has fully implemented an Environmental & Sustainability Management System (ESMS) at its primary maintenance facility and is utilizing the ESMS to drive process improvements in its daily operations as it reduces carbon emissions, waste, and use of water and energy creating the foundation for HART to become ISO 14001 compliant -the highest rated environmental standard in the world.
• Currently, the HART sustainability goals include a reduction of carbon emissions by 4,285 metric tons as well as a 5 percent reduction in both water and energy consumption. All of the goals have a completion date of 2018.
• HART is converting its fleet to Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), a cleaner-burning and more efficient fuel produced domestically in the United States. 20 of the 48 HARTPlus vans are fueled by CNG, all 8 HARTFlex vans have transitioned to CNG and last month HART deployed new CNG buses replacing 22 diesel powered vehicles.
• HART led the way as Florida's first public transit agency to convert to CNG, and opened a $5.5 million CNG fueling facility last year during a mini Earth Day ribbon cutting ceremony.
• HART also uses 40-foot Parallel Hybrid buses that get 18 percent more miles per gallon while emitting 87 percent fewer total hydrocarbons than diesel. There are also five Toyota Prius hybrid cars in the HART fleet that average 38 MPG.
• The entire HART fleet is EPA-certified, and a percentage of the fleet utilizes the latest EPA-certified low emission engines. HART also uses eco-conscious vehicle washing systems that recycle 80 percent of the water, and 65 percent of HART bus shelters are lighted by solar panels, with a plan to convert all shelters to solar power within the next few years.
• HART logged more than 500,000 bicycle boardings in the past two years, combining two modes of carbon-reducing transportation. Cyclists avoid the expense of parking a vehicle while getting more healthy exercise, and leave the driving to HART by bringing their bikes along for the ride.
• There are dozens of free bike racks throughout the HART transit system, too, conveniently located at many of its bus shelters as well as at some of its Park-n-Ride facilities. HART also helps actively promote the growth in cycling in and around Tampa.

According to the American Public Transportation Association (APTA), every year, thanks to public transportation use in the United States, carbon emissions are reduced by 37 million metric tons while helping the country save the equivalent of 4.2 billion gallons of gasoline. HART is helping lead the way, and encourages everyone to join the HART team on Earth Day with a renewed commitment to a greener, healthier, and safer world now and for future generations.