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In her first budget address, Mayor Durkan outlined Seattle’s additional steps to reduce its dependence on fossil fuels

Seattle (September 24) – Building on her budget that seeks efficiencies across City government, Mayor Jenny A. Durkan signed Executive Order 2018-05 to reduce the size of Seattle’s vehicle fleet by 10%. Her budget today also repurposed fuel savings for critical City services. This ambitious fleet reduction goal will create efficiencies in City government by decreasing ongoing costs and eliminating a significant percentage of the City’s contributions to carbon emissions.

“Getting serious about finding efficiencies in our City budget and addressing climate change means making hard choices, and reducing the size of the city’s fleet makes sense for our City’s future,” said Mayor Jenny Durkan. “We have been spending too many taxpayer dollars on our City fleet and we know we can move faster in transitioning to clean energy vehicles. My Executive Order will move Seattle closer to our goal of having a completely green fleet by 2030.”

The Executive Order directs departments in the City of Seattle to submit recommendations for fleet reduction with the aim of trimming approximately 10% from the City-owned fleet of over 4,150 vehicles. Mayor Durkan’s Executive Order also asks departments to pursue electrification of future fleet vehicle purchases while pursuing partnerships with local and state agencies including King County, Sound Transit, and the Port of Seattle to help consolidate our fleet.

The Executive Order builds on Mayor Durkan’s order earlier this year that committed the City to the goal of achieving a fossil-fuel-free fleet by 2030. The City is a national leader in fleet electrification with over 200 plug-in electric vehicles, hundreds of conventional hybrid vehicles, and the largest government-owned electric vehicle charging hub.

The transportation sector accounts for over two-thirds of Seattle’s core greenhouse gas emissions. Addressing those emissions is a core pillar of Mayor Durkan’s Climate Action Plan. In April, Mayor Durkan announced that she will transmit legislation requiring the inclusion of electric vehicle infrastructure in new construction or renovation that includes parking. Earlier this year the City also announced new city rapid charging stations, which will encourage the use of electric vehicles and be powered by Seattle City Light’s clean energy.

Studies have shown that reducing pollution provides significant public health and economic benefits. For more on Mayor Durkan’s proposals to ensure we live in an equitable and inclusive Seattle, please click here.

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