A new partnership between the Province of Manitoba and the Association of Manitoba Municipalities (AMM) will explore ways to use the next generation of environmentally friendly vehicles safely in Manitoba communities. This announcement was made be Infrastructure and Transportation Minister Steve Ashton and Doug Dobrowolski, president of the AMM.
The study will include electric or alternatively fueled vehicles which are part of a growing range of environmentally friendly vehicles becoming available, which have zero or very low emissions.
“Manitoba is looking at how to best incorporate the next generation of environmentally friendly vehicles in our communities in a safe, controlled and sensible manner,” said Ashton. “We need to develop ideas that balance the potential benefits with concerns as to how they can be introduced as a safe means of sustainable transportation.”
The province and Association of Manitoba Municipalities will form a working group to look at how best to move forward on the use of new, environmentally friendly vehicles as part of the range of potential options in the sustainable transportation sector.
“Municipalities are always looking for ways to encourage their citizens to embrace more sustainable activities and modes of transportation,” said Dobrowolski. “However, these alternatives need to be balanced with safety concerns for not only vehicle operators, but passengers and pedestrians as well.”
This initiative is in addition to other ongoing, green endeavors by the province. Recently the Province of Manitoba began a vehicle pilot project with the University of Winnipeg. The university will test an electric, low-speed utility vehicle in traffic around its downtown campus.
“We want to see how this particular battery-powered vehicle handles our cold climate,” said Ashton. “We hope to learn more about how we can use these vehicles to ensure that transportation becomes more sustainable in Manitoba.”
A unique hybrid vehicle is also being tested at the University of Manitoba’s Fort Garry campus. The Interceptor hybrid runs on electricity from a battery pack that is recharged as needed by a gas-fuelled generator while the vehicle is in operation.
The Manitoba government is also currently involved in a plug-in hybrid-vehicle project, testing 10 Toyota Priuses. The plug-in hybrid car operates primarily on electricity with a small gas engine as a back up. The vehicle can be plugged in at home, recharged at night and then used to commute to work the next day, on electric power.
In addition, there are 110 other hybrid vehicles in the fleet of vehicles the province owns and operates, compared to just 11 in 2005. These hybrid vehicles use a gas engine, assisted by an electric motor.
