Location: Harrisonburg, VA
Fleet Type: University Fleet

 

Narrative

James Madison University’s (JMU) Transportation Manager Doug Judy has been interested in clean transportation for some time. He has worked with Virginia Clean Cities (VCC), which is based at JMU, over the years to analyze, right-size and find alternative fuels for the university’s fleet. A few years ago, the organizations collaborated to install a compressed natural gas fueling station at their depot for some of the heavy-duty vehicles using the fuel.

In 2022 VCC was able to provide Judy’s fleet with two non-networked Level 2 charging stations. Judy’s maintenance team had them installed at their fleet depot. A few months later, he was able to secure an order for two Ford F-150 Lightnings through the state’s procurement system. At this time, supply was limited for the trucks due to the microchip shortage, but he managed to procure them early through a waitlist program.

In November 2022 the two electric trucks arrived and were put into use right away in the university’s landscaping division. The trucks were quiet on campus and could haul mulch, debris and just about anything the workers threw in it. Judy has been impressed with the truck’s utility in terms of its outlets for powering electric equipment on site. His department’s director also enjoys showing it off to university leadership and students across campus.

Outputs & Outcomes

Since the arrival of the two trucks, VCC has provided the JMU Transportation Department with three more Level 2 charging stations in an effort to further “green” JMU’s fleet. Although these efforts are incremental and without fanfare, there’s more electrification to come, according to Doug Judy. JMU students, faculty and staff will breathe cleaner air thanks to the new EVs on campus.

Best Practices & Lessons Learned

  1. Work with the fleet manager to develop a state contract for EVSE. This should be a rideable cooperative procurement agreement that can be accessed by other state agencies and local governments. Avoiding a request for procurement greatly accelerates the timeline of EV adoption.
  2. Utilize EV procurement cooperative agreement tools such as Sourcewell and National Fleet Auto Group Cooperative Procurement.

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James Madison University Fleet Story

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