Press Contact: Sophie Cardona: (212) 361-2400, ext. 244 , or email cardona@informinc.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, ­ Tuesday, August 22, 2000

NEW STUDY FINDS NEW JERSEY'S CLEAN TRANSPORTATION PROGRAMS HAVE MILES TO GO; CALLS ON GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS TO MOVE MORE RAPIDLY TO PROVIDE HEALTHY AIR FOR 7.7 MILLION NEW JERSEYANS

New York, NY -- ­ A study released today by INFORM, a national environmental research organization that has studied clean fuel technologies for more than a decade, finds New Jersey far from meeting the commitment made by its Governor to make this state a national leader in the shift to cleaner transportation.

"The move in New Jersey to alternative fueled vehicles (AFVs) and to the more efficient advanced engines of the future has barely begun," said INFORM Founder Joanna Underwood, "and millions of New Jersey residents are paying a heavy price. Ninety-five percent of the State's 8.1 million residents live in areas that fail to meet federal health-based air quality standards, compared to 38 percent of the U.S. population on average. Transportation emissions are a major cause."

INFORM's new report, Green Transportation for New Jersey: The Promise of Clean Fuels, authored by INFORM Consultant Sibyl R. Golden, provides the first independent assessment of state alternative fueled vehicle policies. It also monitors the progress achieved in putting clean-fueled cars, buses and trucks on New Jersey's roadways. Included are recommendations to accelerate the pace of change.

INFORM's report begins with an overview of the threats that transportation poses to the environment and public health in New Jersey. The state's millions of on- and off-road vehicles are responsible for 43 percent of the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and 44 percent of the nitrogen oxides (NOx) that are the main ingredients in ground level ozone, or smog. Smog damages lung tissue, reduces lung function, and sensitizes the lungs to other irritants. The small particulates (soot) in diesel bus and truck exhaust are a recognized trigger for asthma attacks, especially affecting vulnerable populations such as children and the elderly. Diesel exhaust has also been found by the State of California to contain more than 40 toxic substances; half are known or suspected carcinogens. According to Underwood, "making New Jersey's air healthy to breathe cannot be accomplished without major transportation change."

Green Transportation for New Jersey reports that 18 of New Jersey's 21 counties are in non-attainment of federal ground-level ozone standards; twelve (Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Hunterdon, Middlesex, Monmouth, Morris, Ocean, Passaic, Somerset, Sussex, and Union) were ranked in a 1998 EPA report as in the higher of two levels of "severe" non-attainment, just below the "extreme" non-attainment rank of Los Angeles and Houston.

INFORM identified four trends increasing vehicle emissions in New Jersey: the high density of truck traffic traversing the State; a 36 percent increase in vehicle miles traveled between l970 and l997 (while the State's population grew only 12.3 percent); sprawl development (the number of automobile-dependent office developments quadrupled between 1990 and 1997 while the number of transit-accessible offices remained unchanged); and the growing popularity of sport utility vehicles, which are 40 percent more polluting than passenger cars.

Some of the most ambitious programs that INFORM identified in New Jersey, included:

• 1) Governor Whitman's 1999 initiative to buy more AFVs for the state's fleet than mandated by the federal Energy Policy Act (EPACT), to set low emissions standards for these AFVs that are not required by EPACT and to create infrastructure to refuel state vehicles.
• 2) Whitman's proposal for a corporate business tax credit covering the incremental costs of AFV acquisition by corporations.
• 3) The North Jersey Clean Cities program in a 13-county area, which has increased the number of AFVs from 1245 to 2230 and expanded refueling infrastructure from 52 to 57 locations between l997 and 1999.
• 4) A demonstration program of 21 electric commuter vehicles sponsored by the State Department of Transportation and New Jersey Transit at three
• 5) Promotion of business involvement in advanced-technology vehicles, including development and promotion of two prototype hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles: the NJ Venturer (l999) and NJ Genesis (2000).

However, Green Transportation for New Jersey's principal finding was that, with too little leadership and too few resources devoted to clean transportation, New Jersey has miles to go. "While New Jersey started experimenting with AFVs in l991," according to Golden, "the number of these vehicles on its roads is at most several thousand -- less than .010 percent of its 5.8 million vehicles."

The report found only fragmented efforts to establish what INFORM designated as five essential building blocks for a strong state program:

• Dedicated Funding New Jersey has no dedicated on-going funding source for AFV acquisition and infrastructure development. "We have seen programs in other states that could serve as models for New Jersey," says Golden. "California applies an annual vehicle registration surcharge in non-attainment areas which provides more than $100 million annually for AFV initiatives. New York State has earmarked $55 million from its CleanWater/Clean Air Bond Act for its programs."
  
• Monitoring Progress New Jersey has no system for tracking the number of AVFs entering the state's roadways. And its current plan for monitoring will rely on data gathered when vehicles that have been in use for two years go for inspection. "To track AFVs in the State from the moment they go on the roads, New Jersey could easily adopt the system used in California and New York, which simply calls for fuel type and power source information to be listed on vehicle registration forms," Golden noted.
  
• Refueling Infrastructure New Jersey has barely begun to develop a clean fuels refueling infrastructure for major urban centers or its interstate highway system. There are just 34 CNG refueling stations in the state, of which none are accessible to the public. State leadership in planning refueling infrastructure, obtaining construction funds, removing existing obstacles (such as legal liability) to public use of refueling stations and negotiating Interstate refueling agreements, could make a crucial difference.
  
• Subsidizing Up-Front Costs New Jersey has taken limited steps to help buyers cover the incremental costs of acquiring and operating AFVs by use of tax credits or rebates. The State obtained a $500,000 federal grant to cover incremental costs of AFV acquisition by local governments, state universities and other state institutions. It has proposed legislation to provide a tax credit covering 50 percent of the incremental costs of corporate AFVs. Ideas could be drawn from New York, which also allows tax credits for individuals and limited liability partnerships, and Illinois, which funds an 80 percent rebate program by levying a $20 surcharge on fleet vehicle registrations.
  
• Vocal Leadership While state agencies have tried to publicize AVF programs on an ad hoc basis, sustained support for outreach is vital. A strong leadership voice is needed, such as the visible enthusiasm shown by the Governor for the two advanced technology vehicle demonstrations in l999 and 2000.

The report also recommends expanded AFV initiatives targeting state, county, municipal, taxi, school bus, other public fleets, and New Jersey Transit buses.

"New Jersey Transit, operating the second largest bus fleet in the US with about 1950 buses," according to Underwood, "is out of step with the national trend to much cleaner CNG buses. New Jersey Transit is operating only 82 CNG buses (less than five percent of its fleet), and its recent four-year $475-million order for 1244 new buses ­ all diesel ­ will inflict the emissions from this more polluting fuel on millions of New Jerseyans for a generation." By contrast, 31 US transit agencies now have 20 percent or more of their fleets operating on natural gas. Some agencies, including those in Atlanta, Los Angeles, and Sacramento, as well as the New York City Department of Transportation, have turned their backs on diesel and plan to order only natural gas buses. Los Angeles just received its 1000th natural gas bus.

"While installing infrastructure to refuel CNG buses adds cost," notes Underwood, "it represents a good investment in a long term clean air future. This infrastructure could serve other fleet users in New Jersey. And, in addition to fueling today's conventional natural gas buses, it could fuel demonstration advanced electric hybrid and hydrogen fuel cell buses ­ which promise to be even cleaner buses in the longer term."

"New Jersey will have to take the kind of bolder steps outlined in INFORM's report," adds Underwood, "if the State really wants to achieve its leaders stated vision and to give its citizens a healthy future."

The full text of Green Transportation for New Jersey: The Promise of Clean Fuels is available on INFORM's website at http://www.informinc.org/greentransnj.php. Copies can also be obtained by calling INFORM at 212-361-2400 x 239.

INFORM is a national nonprofit organization that identifies practical ways of living and doing business that are environmentally sustainable. For more than a decade, INFORM's reports on alternative transportation fuels and advanced vehicle technologies have been respected resources worldwide.