Washington State officials are espousing the benefits of the Sound Transit Link light rail system operating via carbon-free electricity – becoming the first major light rail system to achieve the milestone.
The accomplishment stems from a Sound Transit Link agreement with Puget Sound Energy (PSE) to purchase wind energy directly from the utility’s Green Direct program, which is projected to save more than $390,000 in electricity costs over the 10-year contract while supporting the creation of local clean energy jobs.
“Innovative projects like PSE’s Green Direct program demonstrate how Washington state continues to be a national leader in the clean energy economy,” Gov. Jay Inslee said. “Puget Sound residents can now travel on Sound Transit’s carbon-free light rail while supporting our local economy and homegrown solutions to solve our global climate crisis.”
Green Direct supplies renewable energy to customers from the largest wind project in western Washington, the Skookumchuk Wind Facility, providing renewable energy directly to six Link Light Rail accounts serving the Airport Station and Angle Lake Station.
“Because transportation is responsible for 40 percent of the greenhouse gases in our state, transit is the linchpin of regional sustainability,” Everett Councilmember and Sound Transit Board member Paul Roberts said. “With this program, Sound Transit is setting a new standard for environmentally friendly transit.”
The Green Direct program aids Sound Transit in efforts to meet its sustainability goals and implement sustainability initiatives from the voter-approved Sound Transit 3 ballot measure, per authorities.
“Sound Transit is now at the national forefront of operating carbon-free transit,” Sound Transit CEO Peter Rogoff said. “What’s exciting about this partnership is that we are demonstrating that sustainability leadership can be accomplished by simultaneously lowering costs for taxpayers while maximizing positive impacts to the local economy.”