'Into The Future': Lynchburg Unveils First Fully Electric Vehicles To Be Part Of City's Fleet | Govt. And Politics

Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter.

Director of Fleet Services Chuck Cramer (left) and Mayor MaryJane Dolan look at Lynchburg’s new electric utility vehicles Thursday.

New electric utility vehicles are shown at Lynchburg's fleet service facility on Thursday.

A new Lynchburg electric utility vehicle is shown at the city's fleet service facility on Thursday.

Lynchburg Vice Mayor Beau Wright drives a new Lynchburg electric utility vehicle at the city's fleet services facility on Thursday.

Lynchburg's new electric utility vehicles are shown on Thursday.

Mayor MaryJane Dolan test-drives one of Lynchburg's new electric utility vehicles on Thursday.

As the garage doors rolled up at the city of Lynchburg’s fleet management building on Memorial Avenue, Mayor MaryJane Dolan, Vice Mayor Beau Wright and several members of city staff looked on.

A new electric utility vehicle is shown at Lynchburg’s Fleet Service Facilities site on Thursday.

Seven new fully electric 2022 Chevrolet Bolt vehicles emerged. They’ll bring the city’s fleet “into the future,” Chuck Cramer, the city’s director of fleet services, said Thursday.

The electric utility vehicles, or EUVs, will be spread out across fleet services, public works and parking enforcement, Cramer said.

Cramer said the pilot program with these seven vehicles has been in the works for about 18 months, and he credited former Deputy City Manager Reid Wodicka with helping to get the ball rolling on the program.

“Reid Wodicka really thought we should step forward and do this, and I pitched a pilot program, a small program, I was thinking two or three vehicles, and we decided we needed to ‘get with the times’ sort of ... and try to find the fuel savings, try to find the reduction in our emissions, because fleets across the country are considered the biggest producers of [greenhouse gasses],” Cramer said.

A look under the hood of one of Lynchburg’s new electric utility vehicles on Thursday.

Cramer said each vehicle cost $31,670, will not require oil changes or spark plug replacements, and will require no gasoline.

According to a handout at the electric vehicle rollout, the city is estimating savings of $1,000 to $1,700 per year for one electric vehicle on fueling, although Cramer said it might be too early to know for sure the savings with this program.

“We’ve done some research; there’s not enough data out there to really say what we’re going to save over 20 years or anything to that effect,” Cramer said.

“But this is a pilot program, we’re bringing them into the city, and we’re going to start looking at the data. We’re going to watch the charging. How much do we pay on charging? How much fuel are we saving? How much use are we getting out of them? Things of that nature.”

Mayor MaryJane Dolan test-drives an electric utility vehicle Thursday at Lynchburg's fleet services facility.

Dolan, who was among the first passengers in the new electric vehicles, said she’d like to see more data before saying she’d like to see a full fleet of electric cars.

“From an environmental standpoint,” Dolan said, “I think it’s really a good move for us to move into the future that way.

“But from a budgetary standpoint, I think I’d like to wait until I saw the data before I endorsed it totally. But I’m excited; it’s fun to drive.”

The vehicles, according to Cramer, have a maximum range of 273 miles. Additionally, the handout said the batteries in the cars are projected to “outlive the cars themselves.”

Lynchburg Vice Mayor Beau Wright drives a new electric utility vehicle at Lynchburg's fleet services facility on Thursday.

The EUVs use regenerative braking going downhill. The car uses the motor to slow down the vehicle, allowing the car to recharge, and drivers will not need to use the brakes as much.

Cramer said the city currently has three “dumb chargers,” which were donated by Virginia Clean Cities, an organization that aims to “advance air quality improvement, economic opportunity, and energy security through deployment of alternative fuel vehicles and infrastructure, education programs and other petroleum reduction activities,” according to its website.

He added city officials have “almost completed” their decision on the smart chargers for the remaining four vehicles.

Wright, who had the opportunity to take one of the vehicles for a ride around the public works complex, said this move sends a message to the community that the city is working to combat climate change.

“I think it sends a really important signal to the community,” Wright said. “I think it’s really important that we invest in renewable energy and climate change mitigation generally, so this is an excellent step.”

Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter.

Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.

The item now moves on to a vote by Lynchburg City Council in the coming weeks.

BEDFORD — The Bedford County Board of Supervisors has denied a rezoning application that would have changed the zoning of 27 acres of land, bl…

Lynchburg City Council unanimously approved a resolution Tuesday night that will name the new Lakeside Drive bridge over Blackwater Creek after Elliot and Rosel Schewel.

For the second time in less than a week, candidates for this November’s at-large Lynchburg City Council election attended a town hall, this ti…

Some changes may be coming for Bedford County short-term rental properties, a designation which includes Airbnb properties. The changes are a response to what county staff felt to be an inadequate ordinance. The biggest driver for the changes are to enable more efficient, better enforcement of short-term rental regulations, particularly regarding the number of occupants on a property.

Five candidates vying for an at-large seat on Lynchburg City Council were represented at a town hall Thursday night at White Rock Baptist Chur…

Walter Virgil Jr. is a nonprofit organizer and Director of Strategic Projects and Alliances at Liberty University.

Lynchburg city staff have presented a plan for the Dearington neighborhood to Lynchburg City Council, laying out a path for improvements to Je…

For Lynchburg City Council candidate Stephanie Reed, the top issue in this November’s election is public safety.