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COMMUNITYWIDE
COUNTY GOVERNMENT
What does Reducing Transportation Emissions mean?
Reducing transportation emissions involves phasing out modes of transportation that consume fossil fuels and reducing vehicle miles traveled. The County of Ventura is implementing programs to help shift single-occupancy vehicle trips, such as cars that run on gasoline, to more sustainable methods of transit (e.g., hydrogen-powered buses) and active modes of transportation (e.g., walking and biking).
To encourage the switch to zero-emission vehicles, the County of Ventura, along with partnering organizations and businesses, have installed electric vehicle (EV) charging stations throughout the county. To learn more about where these stations are located and where there is need, view Ventura County Regional Energy Alliance’s (VCREA) EV Blueprint. This map shows the county’s EV charging stations (and other alternative fueling stations).
What are the Benefits of Reducing Transportation Emissions?
Switching over to more sustainable modes of transportation can mean:
- Saving money on fuel and vehicle maintenance
- Improving air quality by reducing tailpipe emissions such as carbon monoxide, ozone precursors, and particulate matter
- • Creating jobs in the automotive sector related to electric vehicle maintenance, battery manufacturing, and fuel production
- Improving public health by having a greater prevalence of active transportation, such as biking and walking
- Decreasing traffic congestion by increasing the number of people who use public transit
COMMUNITYWIDE
VEHICLE USE
Vehicles operating within the unincorporated community produce GHG emissions as they travel along roadways. In contrast to vehicles that run on gasoline and diesel, cars and trucks that are powered by electricity and hydrogen-fuel technologies are known as zero emission vehicles (ZEVs) because they don’t emit any air quality or GHG pollutants when they are in operation. Instead, GHG emissions associated with EVs are directly correlated to GHG emissions embedded in electricity that is supplied to the vehicle during charging. Electric vehicles that have their electricity supplied entirely from renewable sources (e.g., CPA’s 100% Green Rate Program) don’t have any indirect emissions associated with their operation.
Vehicular emissions can be evaluated by estimating how many miles were traveled by gasoline, diesel, and electric vehicles in the unincorporated community. As shown in the figure below, vehicles in the unincorporated community resulted in the production of approximately 335,236 MTCO2 in 2022. In that same year, the use of the use of hybrid and electric vehicles in the unincorporated community avoided the generation of approximately 9,361 MTCO2e, compared to if these vehicles had been powered by gasoline or diesel.
335,236 MTCO2
emitted in 2022
9,361 MTCO2e
avoided in 2022
335,236 MTCO2
emitted in 2022
9,361 MTCO2e
avoided in 2022
Communitywide
Near Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) adoption
The County of Ventura encourages the public to transition to NZEVs, such as plug-in hybrids, battery electric vehicles, and hydrogen fuel cell buses. VCREA and partners, such as Community Environmental Council (CEC) and Electric Drive 805, host webinars and table at events to provide information to the public on how they can make purchasing an EV affordable. As of 2022, there were approximately 22,994 ZEVs in unincorporated Ventura County.
Communitywide
General Plan CAP Program CTM-L Master Bicycle Network Plan
Apart from ZEVs and public transportation, mobile source emissions can also be reduced through active transportation methods such as walking and biking. CAP Program CTM-L Master Bicycle Network Plan will increase the availability of bike paths, so the public has safe routes to travel by bike and foot. Approximately 27.3 new miles of bike lanes have been constructed in the unincorporated county since 2016, resulting in an approximate savings of 1,206 MTCO2e in mobile source emissions in 2022.
COUNTY GOVERNMENT
EV CHARGING STATIONS AT COUNTY FACILITIES
Electric vehicle charging stations are also available at County government facilities. Efforts by County agencies have resulted in the installation of 12 public charging stations and 56 County fleetcharging stations at these buildings. The public charging stations can be found at the County Government Center Lot G, the Ventura County APCD building located on Telephone Road, Todd Road Jail, the GSA Maintenance building, Juvenile Court, Ventura County Behavior Health on Williams Drive in Oxnard, Fillmore Fire Station, and the Human Service Agency buildings on Patridge Drive and Telephone Road.
County Government
Near Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) adoption
The County’s General Service Agency has a motorpool of vehicles available for employees to use for county business and operations. The motorpool has expanded to include near zero emission vehicles, including battery electric (BEV) and plug-in hybrid (PHEV) vehicles. As of 2022, the County has 51 ZEVs in its fleet, an approximately 920% increase since 2016.
