FOR RELEASE: 07/28/2021
Washington, D.C. – Today, Zero Emission Transportation Association (ZETA) Executive Director Joe Britton joined Secretary Jennifer Granholm, Senator Debbie Stabenow, and Representative Paul Tonko at a press conference to announce $60 million in new investments into advanced vehicle technologies. This funding, which comes from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Vehicle Technology Office, will finance projects aimed at decarbonizing the transportation sector.
“Today’s announcement is so important,” said Britton. “We’re not just resting on the technology available today, but investing to secure our electric transportation manufacturing leadership to make electric vehicles a true American success story. We know how to compete and we have won these fights before, but we can’t do it without leadership from Congress and the Administration, which is why I want to thank them once again for being all in on transportation electrification.”
The transportation sector is responsible for 29% of all climate change-inducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the United States. In some states – like neighboring Virginia – transportation is responsible for nearly half of all GHG emissions. Electrifying the transportation sector will drastically reduce the sector’s emissions because electric vehicles are at least 67% less carbon-intensive over their lifetimes than gas-powered vehicles. And, transportation electrification won’t only protect the environment: By reducing our transportation sector’s emissions, we would prevent hundreds to thousands of premature deaths and save billions of dollars in healthcare costs each year. The electric vehicle industry will create hundreds of thousands of good-paying domestic manufacturing jobs, too.
“Fossil-fuel powered cars and trucks are a leading cause of air pollution and carbon emissions, and that is why we are focusing on decarbonizing the transportation sector to achieve President Biden’s climate goals,” said Secretary Granholm. “Partnering with industry and leading research universities, DOE’s investment in these 24 projects will create technologies and techniques that will cut vehicle greenhouse emissions and boost America’s competitiveness in the global clean energy market.”
Today’s announcement comes as Congress continues to negotiate an infrastructure package. The Zero Emission Transportation Association recently sent policy guidance to congressional leaders detailing how these infrastructure investments could be used to accelerate the electrification of the transportation sector.
About ZETA
The Zero Emission Transportation Association (ZETA) is a federal coalition focused on advocating for 100% EV sales by 2030. ZETA is committed to enacting policies that drive EV adoption, create hundreds of thousands of jobs, secure American global EV manufacturing dominance, drastically improve public health, and significantly reduce carbon pollution.
