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The objective of the Twin Cities Electric Vehicle Community Mobility Network Project is to deploy electric vehicle (EV) charging and electric vehicles along with providing supporting outreach and education, creating a community-focused mobility network that reduces barriers to EV adoption. The EV Spot Network (formerly referred to as the Twin Cities Electric Vehicle Mobility Network) will have three unique aspects:

• EV Spot Charging: The charging hubs will be located on public roadways throughout Saint Paul and Minneapolis and operated by the cities. Each charging hub will be available for users to plug in the shared electric vehicles as well as for the public to charge privately owned electric vehicles.

• Evie Carsharing Service: HOURCAR, a local carsharing nonprofit, will operate the new carsharing service called Evie. For the first time in the Twin Cities, this carsharing service will use a one-way, semi free-floating model.

• Multifamily EV Carshare Pilot: 50 charging stations and shared electric vehicles at 25 multifamily sites.

The project will deploy electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE) and electric vehicles in St. Paul, Minneapolis, and surrounding suburbs. The EVSE deployments include both Level 2 chargers as well as DC fast chargers. The vehicle deployments provide a public carsharing program and dedicated carsharing access at multi-unit dwellings. The project will also host ride and drive events as well as community events to foster a community-focused EV network.

For more information on this project, check the Technology Integration 2021 Annual Report or the 2022 Annual Merit Review presentation and the 2023 Annual Merit Review presentation.

Currently, railroads are operating inefficient legacy diesel locomotives with emissions substantially higher than proposed Tier 5 requirements that are costly to maintain. Reducing criteria pollutants is of critical importance because rail yards tend to be in areas where underserved populations have some of the poorest air quality. In this project, Gas Technology Institute (GTI), in collaboration with OptiFuel Systems, LLC, and other partners, is conducting a field demonstration of a 4,300 horsepower, Tier 5-compliant, hybrid line-haul locomotive that can operate on compressed or renewable natural gas (CNG/RNG) with near-zero emissions. GTI has a multi-engine approach that increases fuel efficiency by 20% and, with the use of RNG, will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40%. The utilization of proven, commercially available equipment (i.e., engines, CNG storage, CNG refueling) and usage of domestic CNG and RNG has both emissions and cost advantages for the railroad industry.

For more information on this project, check the Technology Integration 2021 Annual Report or the Annual Merit Review presentation.

The goal of this project is to prove the operational and financial effectiveness of medium-duty (MD) and heavy-duty (HD) electric vehicles (EVs) in commercial fleets. Through diverse partnerships, the project employs commercially available EVs, electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE), facilities, and app-platforms to ensure technology deployment and to showcase significant return on investment. While original equipment manufacturer (OEM) models are newly becoming available, many fleet questions remain about the real-world operational and economic viability of MD and HD EVs. This project is designed to provide fleets the real-world experience needed to answer these questions for themselves and disseminate this information from trusted fleet and Clean Cities coalition peers. Clean Fuels Ohio is partnering with OEMs and EVSE equipment providers to operate three demonstration projects of MD and HD EVs (refuse truck, delivery trucks) with a goal of spurring Class 4-8 EV adoption in fleet applications nationwide.

For more information on this project, check the Technology Integration 2021 Annual Report or the 2022 Annual Merit Review presentation and the 2023 Annual Merit Review presentation.

Community preparedness planning and collaboration among electric vehicle ecosystem stakeholders can result in a greater understanding of electric vehicles and their benefits, more incentives for ownership, increased safety, and a more accommodating infrastructure, and can lead to increased EV adoption on the nation's roadways. In this project, NFPA augments its world-class, web-based EV training programs to include additional modules for charging station installers, code officials, utilities, dealerships, fleet owners, garages/maintenance facilities, insurance companies, and vehicle owners. NFPA is also expanding its existing crash reconstruction and tow and salvage operator programs to reflect the latest safety knowledge and tactics. The project involves developing a digital facilitation toolkit for Clean Cities coalitions and advising and assisting selected coalitions that will be responsible for conducting approximately 30 community preparedness assessment workshops for local community stakeholders.

For more information on this project, check the Technology Integration 2021 Annual Report or the 2022 Annual Merit Review presentation and the 2023 Annual Merit Review presentation.

The objective of the project is to provide a small-scale pilot project for electric vehicle (EV) fleet adoption by Shelby County. The focus of this project is the installation of charging infrastructure along with the acquisition of a limited number of EVs. Piloting a small number of EVs and installing charging infrastructure helps provide proof of concept for the future expansion of electric vehicles in the county fleet. The project team is purchasing five new electric vehicles—either original equipment manufacturer (OEM) factory-produced or conventional vehicles that are converted by OEM-authorized/warranted Qualified Vehicle Modifiers—for use by Shelby County's Roads, Bridges, and Engineering Department. The project includes the installation of vehicle charging infrastructure in appropriate fleet parking areas to support these new vehicles as well as future electric fleet vehicles. The project also involves implementation of appropriate maintenance and operations training for key fleet services staff. Finally, an analysis and evaluation of vehicle performance, associated cost savings, and greenhouse gas emissions reductions helps provide a better understanding of the impact and return on investment of this project.

For more information on this project, check the Technology Integration 2021 Annual Report or the 2022 Annual Merit Review presentation and the 2023 Annual Merit Review presentation.

Compared to conventional trucks, battery-electric trucks (eTrucks) have potential advantages in reducing fuel and maintenance costs as well as harmful and greenhouse gas emissions. The medium-duty (MD) truck market is a likely candidate for a significant and near-term adoption of eTrucks in daily, return-to-base, urban and regional trucking applications of fewer than 100 miles per day. However, many trucking fleets have very limited or no exposure to the new eTruck technology. The lack of eTruck experience and the concerns about eTrucks including range limits, charging infrastructure availability, maintenance, and cost, are considered the main barriers for the broader adoption by trucking fleets of MD eTrucks. The objective of this project is to demonstrate a MD eTruck technology fleet of three eTruck vehicles and supporting infrastructure in fleets that have little or no experience with these technologies. The MD eTruck demonstration testbed is used to evaluate the performance of MD electric trucks in various applications by a diverse group of trucking fleets. The project may help potential fleets gain necessary eTruck knowledge and experience to make informed decisions about MD eTruck adoption. The project collects eTruck fleet operational and use data to analyze the challenges and needs associated with the use of MD eTrucks in fleets across a broad range of geographical locations.

For more information on this project, check the Technology Integration 2021 Annual Report or Annual Merit Review presentation.

The objective of the Helping Rural Counties Transition to Cleaner Fuels and Vehicles project is to create models for effectively transferring advanced clean fuel and vehicle technologies to underserved county governments and rural communities and to share those models and lessons learned through a nationally distributed Replication Playbook. Rural county governments often lack the staff capacity to learn about new technologies, implement new training and maintenance systems, and educate their workforces. The lack of funding and financing options, combined with staff capacity to research and pursue existing incentives, can also be a significant barrier to exploring alternative fuels and advanced technology vehicles. Transportation Energy Partners is coordinating and supporting Clean Cities coalitions in eight states as they work with rural county leaders to overcome these and other barriers and find models that work for increasing adoption of cleaner fuels and vehicles.

For more information on this project, check the Technology Integration 2021 Annual Report or the 2022 Annual Merit Review presentation and the 2023 Annual Merit Review presentation.