city of greenvillesustainability
Mobility
Electric Vehicle Charging Stations
The City of Greenville and Plug In Carolina, a Charleston nonprofit sponsored by the state’s major utilities, have installed a total of 16 electric vehicle charging stations in public locations in downtown Greenville. , the first set of 16 total units installed in downtown Greenville. Greenville currently leads the state with more public charging stations than other city in South Carolina.
The project, which launched June 15, 2010, is funded by two state grants secured by Plug In Carolina through the South Carolina Energy Office. The City of Greenville received $60,000 of the grant funds for equipment and installation of the charging stations.
Trails & Greenways
Bicycle and pedestrian mobility are vital components in creating a multi-modal transportation
network within the City of Greenville. The popular Swamp Rabbit Trail is the centerpiece
of the City’s trail and greenway system. Currently, there are approximately 10 miles
of paved bicycling and walking trails within the City.
The Trails & Greenways Master Plan includes over 100 miles of proposed greenway
trails. The City’s Swamp Rabbit Trail connects to the constructed by the Greenville County Recreation District, creating a regional
amenity connecting Travelers Rest and Furman University to downtown Greenville,
Falls Park, Cleveland Park and Greenville Technical College. Visit the
Trails & Greenways homepage for more information, including downloadable
maps.
Bikeville
Bikeville
is an organization of volunteers that was created to empower bicyclists and motorists
to share the road and to provide bicycling education and safety resources. The City
and Bikeville host events celebrating National Bike Month every May, as well as
numerous education and outreach programs throughout the City at schools, non-profits,
and community organizations- educating and encouraging bicycle safety and accessibility.
In addition to the greenway and trail construction, there have been efforts to retrofit
the current transportation network with on-street bicycle facilities including bicycle
lanes and signed routes. A Complete Streets resolution was adopted by City Council requiring
new or reconstructed roadways to be user friendly for all vehicles, bicycles, transit,
and pedestrians. To further promote bicycling, new developments in the City of Greenville
are required by ordinance to install Bicycle Parking anytime vehicular parking is provided.
The City is currently undergoing a comprehensive Bicycle Master Plan process, to identify
key opportunities for improving its bicycle network. Sign-up for the
Bicycling and Greenways E-newsletter to get involved!
Additionally, City employees have a bicycle available to them at City Hall to use
for traveling to meetings at various City facilities or exercising during lunch.
The City also participates in a federal Bicycle Commuter Program, benefiting City
employees who commute by bike.
All of these efforts earned the City of Greenville the recognition of being a Bicycle
Friendly Community designation by the League of American Bicyclists in October 2009.
Visit the Bikeville
homepage for information about all things bicycling within the City.
Greenlink/Transit
The City of Greenville operates the transit system, Greenlink, connecting visitors and residents alike to employment
and shopping centers as well as recreation and entertainment destinations. Greenlink
provides bus services six days a week on eleven fixed-routes, in addition to paratransit
services and a downtown trolley. In 2009, over 650,000 passengers took advantage
of Greenlink’s services. These passenger trips represent a real reduction in congestion
in our roads and a reduction of polluting emissions in the air we breath. In an
effort to enhance Greenville’s multi-modal network, bicycle racks are available
on the front of every Greenlink bus and several transit routes cross the Swamp Rabbit
Trail.
Visit Greenlink’s website for route and schedule information and to learn more about their ongoing
Transit Vision and Master Plan.
New Freedom/JARC
Greenville Transit Authority/Greenlink seeks to improve the sustainability of private organizations through
the creation of private/public partnerships. The two funding programs that capitalize
on this process are Job Access and Reverse Commute and New Freedom. Both programs
offer fifty percent (50%) operational support and eighty percent (80%) capital for
organizations seeking to provide transit service to low to moderate income individuals.
Job Access and Reverse Commute (JARC) is an FTA funding program that provides financial
support for service organizations throughout the Greenville region. The organization
must demonstrate a desire to provide transit service to individuals seeking to commute
from their place of residence to their place of employment. New Freedom provides
financial support for service organizations throughout the Greenville region. Eligible
transit service must be designed around the needs of the elderly and disabled.
Both programs assist in improving the sustainability of the respective organizations
through financial support. An organization must offer transit service or must be
seeking to offer transit service in order to be eligible for assistance. To learn
more about either program, please contact Gregory Baney, GTA Transit Planner/Grants Manager,
at (864) 467-2700, ext 24.
Fleet Vehicles
The City of Greenville has taken various measures to increase the efficiency of
its fleet vehicles. These measures include changing vehicle types, using alternative
fuels, and maintenance techniques. The City currently operates three (3) hybrid vehicles,
including the City the Ford Escape Hybird, in use by Mayor White. Sixty (60) other City
vehicles are E85 capable to use alternative fuel technologies. Police
vehicles are purchased with fuel economy and efficiency taken into consideration,
providing the greatest possible fuel economy without compromising performance. There
are also twelve GEM electric vehicles
used by various City departments including Grounds and Maintenance, Public Information
and Events, and Parking Services.
Vehicle maintenance is not only essential to keeping the fleet running smoothly,
but also helps to reduce pollution from these vehicles and increases fuel efficiency.
Synthetic oil is used in all vehicles to increase the duration between oil changes,
more than doubling the industry standard. The reusable portions of tires are recapped
to reduce the amount of tire heading to the landfill after just one use. Additionally,
on some vehicles, two tires per axel are being replaced with "super singles." These tires to reduce
the weight of the vehicle, increase the longevity of the "super single" over conventional
tires, and improve fuel efficiency.
A number of alternative fuels are also utilized by city vehicles including biodiesel,
compressed natural gas, and propane injection.
During the warmer three-fourths of the year the City uses a blend of 5% biodiesel
to 95% conventional diesel mix in nearly 250 vehicles, including the Greenlink buses.
Biodiesel is also utilized in the City’s turf equipment and tractors.
Compressed natural gas, CNG, has been utilized by the City since 1997. CNG burns
cleaner than other fossil fuels and safer if a spill were to occur. Currently, three (3)
of the City’s dump trucks operate with CNG.
Propane injection is also used on six (6) of the City’s vehicles, include several garbage
trucks. Propane injections are a cleaner burning fuel than diesel, and less quantity
is needed to perform the same function. For example, four (4) gallons of propane is used
in lieu of five (5) gallons of diesel for City’s operations.