Local governments, such as the city of Pittsburgh, already are shifting toward electric vehicles. Mayor Bill Peduto has committed to making the city fleet free of fossil fuels by 2030, with some of the first electric vehicles due to hit Pittsburgh streets very soon.
Carnegie Mellon University has an entire “Vehicle Electrification Group” dedicated to studying hybrid and plug-in electric vehicles. Pittsburgh exemplifies how the transportation sector can help secure our clean-energy future. The silver lining to the Volkswagen scandal, if there is one, is that the settlement funding we obtain will provide an opportunity to make smart investments that will benefit Pennsylvania residents for generations to come. Pennsylvania leaders must not squander the opportunity to build a sustainable electric-vehicle infrastructure that will create jobs and invigorate a clean-transportation sector. In the end, this will make communities across the commonwealth healthier and safer.