The City is taking action and providing leadership on climate change and sustainability goals. In 2022, Council approved the Community Energy & Greenhouse Gas Reduction Plan. Transportation is a major focus of this plan, and electrifying the City’s fleet will have a significant impact on emissions.
The City’s greenhouse gas (GHG) initiatives apply to City operations and to supporting the needs of residents and businesses as Barrie works to transition to a low carbon, net-zero realized community by 2050.
The City's Electrify Barrie Program includes electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure projects, including Electrifying the Barrie Transit Fleet, plus EV education and awareness initiatives.
Conversion Benefits
There are many benefits of converting gas powered trucks to electric, including reducing GHG emissions, advancing sustainability goals, and leading the way as a municipality that’s committed to a greener future. Electric equipment is also less noisy and disruptive than gas-powered versions. While there is a higher up-front cost for purchase and charging infrastructure, savings are made over the life of the vehicles—especially with the rising cost of fuel. See Progress Highlights for specifics regarding benefits throughout the conversion.
Phased Approach
In 2021, staff completed an alternative fuel study and attained Council endorsement of phased conversion of the City's fleet. Phased means that the City won’t be replacing all existing vehicles at once. Where feasible, vehicles will be converted as they are replaced at the end of their normal useful life.
Functionality Considerations
City fleet vehicles will be converted to electric where a suitable electric alternative exists. In some cases, the functionality of electric vehicles is not yet suitable for the City’s operations:
- vehicles like snowplows and emergency (fire) response trucks may not be able to be converted, because of the range and performance needed.
- electric parks maintenance equipment is purchased whenever possible, but if the required functionality isn’t available in electric, a lower GHG-emitting engine is preferred.
As technology improves over time, it is expected that more and more City vehicles and equipment will be able to be converted.
Progress Highlights
It’s estimated that it will take about 10 years for light duty (SUVs, pickup trucks) vehicles to be replaced, and a longer timeline for larger, heavy-duty equipment and vehicles. The City will convert to electric based on technology availability, budget constraints, and other factors. Key progress highlights on the phased conversion:
| 2022 | The City replaced two natural gas ice resurfacing units with the City’s first electric ones. The conversion eliminates 38 tonnes of emissions annually and attains 80% energy savings compared to natural gas units. The conversion also results in ~1,820 maintenance hours saved per year and $12,000 cost avoidance in reduced annual maintenance costs. |
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| 2024 | The phased conversion of the City’s fleet reached a new milestone as the City added seven Ford Lightning pickup trucks to be used by Wastewater Operations, Water Operations, Roads Operations, and Parks Planning teams. The trucks will be shared across other City departments to test their suitability for various tasks. The City received a $5,000 grant per vehicle and an $70,000 grant towards the costs of the charging infrastructure. |
| 2025 | The City’s transition to an electric fleet continues with the addition of four new EV pickup trucks, expanding the use of zero-emission vehicles across multiple departments. |
Did you know? For the City's EV pickup trucks, the anticipated savings in fuel costs is ~$2000 per truck annually. The estimated reduction in greenhouse gas emissions is 9 tonnes per truck annually.