In January, Gainesville, Fla., City Commission adopted the city’s first Climate Resiliency Plan and RTS Zero Emission Transition Plan. City of Gainesville’s Chief Resilience Officer Dan Zhu said the plan includes 10 chapters, the first one and the most actionable is transportation and fleet electrification.

According to an article in the Alachua Chronicles by Jennifer Cabrera — “Gainesville City Commission Adopts Climate Resiliency Plan & RTS Zero Emission Transition Plan” Jan. 21, 2025 — previous actions taken by city officials include:

• In 2018, the city committed to net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2045 and zero waste by 2040.
• In 2019, the city declared a climate state of emergency.
• In 2020, they formed a joint water and climate policy board.
• In 2021, the city joined the United Nations Race to Zero Pledge and completed its first greenhouse gas emission inventory.

Cabrera reported the Climate Resiliency Plan laid out a timeline to get to nearly 100% electric vehicles in 2045, including regional transit system buses at 80% by 2045, RTS light duty at 100% by 2045 and the city’s general fleet at 100% by 2045. The city also plans to increase its electric charger availability. There are currently 126 chargers, and it’ll be adding another 47 funded by a recent grant from the Biden Administration.

Zhu explained there are three categories of transportation chapters: buses, regional transit system light-duty buses and general fleet light duty. She said currently nine out of 118 buses are low or zero emission or 7.76%. By 2030, the city wants to double that to 18 buses or 32%, and by 2045, 95 buses or 81%. She said for the light-duty buses, Gainesville has 36 that are low emission or 22%. It wants to be 100% zero emission by 2045. In the general fleet, there are approximately 1,080 light-duty vehicles. Currently, the city has 11 Nissan LEAF EVs that are fully electric and 120 hybrid vehicles. They are projected to be at 100% by 2045. These vehicles are utilized by all city departments.

Grants received

Zhu said the year before last, the city received a federal grant for $4 million, which allowed it to purchase four electric buses. Last year, it received a grant for $26.4 million from the department of transportation.

In a press release dated July 10, 2024, from Rossana Passaniti, the city’s public information officer, stated, “The award is the city’s largest federal grant for its Regional Transit System.” The release stated that about $21.9 million will enable the city to purchase full-size hybrid electric buses. Zhu shared Gainesville will likely purchase 19 buses with those funds.

The remaining funds will be used to build the city’s first solar-generating facility at the RTS Administration complex.

Zhu said the “solar canopy for the employee parking lot will help charge the electric buses.”

The press release included quotes from Gainesville’s mayor and city manager. Gainesville’s Mayor Harvey Ward said of the grant, “Thanks to this historic investment in sustainable public transportation for our community by the Biden Administration, we’ll have one of the newest — and most fuel-efficient — transit fleets in the entire state. This funding will truly help us better serve our neighbors who rely on RTS for safe, efficient and reliable transportation every single day.”

In the press release, City Manager Cynthia W. Curry was quoted as saying, “This significant investment in clean energy technologies underscores our commitment to building a more sustainable future for our community.”

She added, “Most importantly, the upgrades will provide eco-friendly transportation for all neighbors, aligning with our vision of sustainability and mobility for all.”

At the beginning of this year, the city was awarded $11.65 million in grant funding through the Federal Charging and Fueling Infrastructure (CFI) program by the Department of Transportation.

Zhu said, “This year started out good.”

She said the grant would be used to build 47 charging stations at 17 locations across the city. She said some would be single charging while others would be dual-charging stations.

The city currently has 126 charging stations. In a press release published by Passaniti dated Jan. 14, 2025, she listed the locations approved for charging stations. Municipal locations include the MLK Jr. Multipurpose Center, Butler Plaza Transit Station, Sweetwater Wetlands Park, Depot Park, Gainesville City Hall, Eastside Community Center, Northside Park, SW Parking Garage and the Gainesville Technology Entrepreneurship Center.

Additional sites approved through the cooperation of community partners Alachua County and Gainesville Regional Utilities, include the Alachua County Health Department, Alachua County tax Collector Office/Florida Department of Motor Vehicles, Sweetwater Preserve, Veteran’s Memorial Park, Cynthia Moore Chestnut Park, Tower Road Branch Library, University Air Center and the Gainesville Regional Airport.

Mayor Ward was quoted as saying, “As EVs move onto the secondary market, we are already seeing increased demand for them, and this helps make certain usage can be city-wide. There are going to be even more of them on the road than there are now, and that infrastructure for them is necessary. This is a very big deal,” he said.

According to the release, the city will work over the next few months to secure a private contractor for the project, which will contribute $2.91 million, raising the total value of the project to $14.56 million.

The city will host community engagement sessions later this year and expects design and site improvements work to be done in 2026, and installation of the charging stations should begin in late 2027.

Ride and drive event

Last fall, the city partnered with the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy for a ride and drive event. The event provided city leaders, elected officials and staff the unique opportunity to test-drive a TESLA Model 3.

Zhu said of the event, “It was a great experience for city staff.”

Participants came from several city departments, including human resources, fleet, public works, parks, housing, communications and sustainable development, as well as elected officials, a representative from the Alachua County and the city of Gainesville Joint Water and Climate Policy Board.

Zhu said unfortunately because of insurance reasons they weren’t able to have neighbors participate, but the city will look for more opportunities in the future. She said people were most interested in how much mileage the vehicles get and how they’re charged. She said people also ask about the differences in level 1, 2 and 3 chargers.

Zhu said level 1 chargers are most often found in homes because they take up to two days to fully charge a vehicle. Level 2 chargers are good for workplaces as they charge in four to six hours, and level 3 chargers are fast charging stations, fully charging in one hour.

When asked about heavy-duty city vehicles, Zhu said, “We started the conversation with the EV steering committee, but there are limited resources to choose from now, but we’re keeping a close eye on the progress of the market.”

Zhu admitted for cities that are thinking about starting sustainability plans, “There are some challenges at the beginning, but working together as a team is very important and very helpful.”

She said Gainesville has different teams focused on different areas. The EV steering committee is focused on the zero waste ordinance now, but she said, “Working together as a group, having buy-in from the staff and neighbors, with support from elected officials and the city manager — when you put that all together, you keep moving forward in the right direction.”

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