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TransLink: Sustainability in Focus



Vancouver, British Columbia-based TransLink, serving a population of 2.4 million people, is proud to be a leader in sustainability.

The agency started its journey in earnest in 2003 with development of an Environmental Management System (EMS) conforming to ISO standards, leading to development of its environmental policy.

Six years later, TransLink launched its Sustainability Policy and became the first public transportation agency in North America to achieve Gold level status under APTA’s Sustainability Commitment. In 2015, TransLink became the first Canadian public transit agency and one of only five agencies in North America to achieve Platinum level status.
TransLink’s sustainability policies have proven successful in encouraging employees and the wider public to walk, cycle and use public transit.
These recognitions came as a result of the following improvements:

* Air contaminants (tons per passenger km) = reduction 8.6 percent;
* Greenhouse gas (GHG) savings (net ­savings from transit) = saved 3.8 percent;
* Total energy use (fleet and facilities) – ­gigajoules per passenger km = reduction 4.9 percent;
* Water usage at transit centers – m3 per ­passenger km = reduction 19.6 percent; and
* Recycling – tons = increased 77.7 percent.

“Sustainability is core to TransLink’s mandate in providing public transportation options that meet the social, environmental and economic needs of our region,” says Sarah Buckle, director, Enterprise Risk and Sustainability. “We’re proud to be recognized for our continued commitment to environmental stewardship.”

There is plenty of ­opportunity for the agency to continue improving.

TransLink recently completed the first phase of a Low Carbon Fleet Strategy. Its goal: to reduce fleet emissions while still meeting funding and service requirements.

“We’re looking at innovative low- or zero-carbon fleet technologies,” says Buckle. The strategy, which will be complete by mid-2019, will serve as a fleet and infrastructure road map to transition to a zero-carbon bus fleet by 2050.

The challenge when looking at new technology is the lack of benchmarking. To reduce risk, TransLink will test four zero-emission electric battery buses next year. These buses will be able to recharge within four to seven minutes at fast-charge stations at each end of their route.

TransLink’s SkyTrain rapid transit network is an almost zero-emission technology.

If the pilot yields good results, TransLink will eye electric battery bus procurement in the early- to mid-2020s. This is when experts believe the lifecycle costs will provide a good return on investment.

TransLink’s bus operating company, Coast Mountain Bus Company (CMBC), operates the agency’s fleet of 1,500 buses. It has established an EMS to identify and manage the effect of operations on the environment. The EMS, in place since 2003, was developed by identifying and ranking environmental aspects and developing environmental management programs for the significant aspects.

CMBC has seven environmental committees made up of managers, bus drivers and trades representatives. They help with the rollout of environmental programs and initiatives and help address concerns.

One particularly successful program addressed bus idling. Over the past eight years, the program has reduced diesel consumption by a remarkable 560,000 liters annually. This has saved the company more than $5.1 million (Cdn.) in fuel costs and reduced greenhouse gas emissions.

The bus company has also achieved major cuts in natural gas and electricity consumption at facilities. Newly installed building automation systems lower the heat and turn off lights when no one is in the room. The company is also piloting heat-exchange projects at two transit centers. These aim to reduce natural gas consumption and transition to renewable energy and are estimated to save $30,000 to $45,000 a year and 150 to 250 tons in GHG emissions. Also, many facilities now use LED lighting, reducing energy consumption by 30 percent.

CMBC has also cut water use by 75 percent since 2009 by installing water ­filtration systems for its bus wash that uses recycled water many times over.

Derek Stewart, director of safety, environment & emergency management for CMBC, who reported that the anti-idling program has reduced diesel consumption by 560,000 liters annually.

On the rail side, TransLink’s SkyTrain rapid transit network is an almost zero-emission technology. Because of this, roughly 30 percent of TransLink’s fleet energy use is from renewable sources.

All head offices, including TransLink’s LEED Gold-designated building, are near SkyTrain stations. Many TransLink employees use public transit to get to work, whether SkyTrain, bus, SeaBus or West Coast Express commuter rail. Employees receive free transit passes.

Employees are key to TransLink’s environmental success, Buckle says, as are the passengers who use the system every day.

In 2017, TransLink launched an online Accountability Center that tracks financial and non-financial performance indicators. They include GHG emissions, air pollutants, energy consumption and others, ensuring sustainability is always in focus.

“Making this information public holds TransLink accountable to our environmental commitments,” said Buckle. “And this in turn drives us to improve our performance.”

TransLink is keen to attribute the success of its sustainability initiatives to best practices that include the following:

1.  Reporting on environmental indicators as part of an annual accountability report; some indicators are tracked on a public-facing Accountability Center on the TransLink website. Having robust tools to monitor and measure the indicators is important. These key indicators are assured (verified) by a third party.

2.  Working closely with operating companies on sustainability initiatives and monitoring key environmental indicators. TransLink has established an Extended Environmental Committee with representation from its head office and the bus and rail operating companies.

3.  Encouraging employees to bring forward environmental ideas, and moving initiatives forward with the help of the environmental departments at the operating companies.

4.  Working closely with utility providers and capitalizing on any funding programs available to conduct energy audits or retro-commissioning studies at facilities.

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