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Energy

Metro’s long-term goal is to manage overhead costs by controlling energy pricing using a variety of options, including but not limited to Community Choice Aggregates (CCA), Power Purchase Agreements (PPA), microgrids, and renewables.

Metro is looking at all opportunities to control costs and protect assets through a variety of programs:

  • Energy Costs – Controlling short-term energy rates driven by demand peaks
  • Cybersecurity – Hardening Metro’s security system and assets by controlling access points during power interruptions
  • Demand-Side Response (DSR) - Modifying demand for energy through various methods such as financial incentives and behavioral change
  • Distributed Energy Resources (DER) - Decentralizing energy sources including the use of renewable sources to generate and store electricity, while decarbonizing the environment
  • Operational Continuity - Maintaining or enhancing operational effectiveness while reducing total force energy demand
  • Business Continuity - Providing safe and reliable service to the community at all times
  • Climate Change – Providing solutions that reduce Metro’s carbon footprint
  • Transactive Energy – Controlling techniques used to manage the flow or exchange of energy within an existing electric power system in regard to economic and market based standard values of energy
  • Energy Conservation – Preventing the wasteful use of energy, especially in order to ensure its continuing availability

Photovoltaic Training Program:

This staff training and preventative maintenance program ensures Metro’s investments in solar remain in a state of good repair. The program includes annual refresher trainings, a troubleshooting “hotline,” and real-time monitoring of solar production. Since 2014, 120 personnel have received over 700 hours of training.

Renewable Natural Gas (RNG):

In August 2017, Metro began to pilot the use of renewable natural gas, a low-carbon alternative to traditional natural gas, for its bus fleet of over 2,200 CNG buses. In addition, Metro conducts periodic solicitations for the sale of carbon credits including Low Carbon Fuel Standard (“LCFS”) credits.

This program is in support of Metro’s Motion Endorsing GHG Reduction Targets and Biomethane Implementation Plan . RNG comes from waste sources such as landfills and dairy farms and can be delivered directly to Metro’s bus facilities using utility pipelines, which means no modifications to fueling infrastructure or vehicles.

Carbon Credits:

Metro generates carbon credits through the use of low carbon transportation fuels such as electricity and renewable natural gas. Follow this link for information about program solicitations.

Building Management System (BMS) Assessment:

Metro is assessing the BMS in each of its operating Divisions to improve system performance, efficiency and provide consistent standards, specifications, guidelines and practices.

Commissioning and Retro-Commissioning Program Development:

Metro is developing commissioning policies and guidelines to standardize our project commissioning requirements and provide a “best practices” level of commissioning authority and oversight to improve system efficiency and performance.

Lighting Retrofits:

Metro completed the installation and commissioning of an integrated lighting control system at a rail maintenance facility.  The resulting measured energy savings are over 975,000 kilowatt hours (kWh) per year.

Next, Metro is designing a full-building lighting retrofit for Gateway headquarter building, which could reduce over 2,000,000 kWh of electricity use per year and save over $400,000 per year in energy and maintenance costs.

Energy – Performance outcomes and trends

Energy Use:

When normalized to account for an increase in service levels, Metro’s energy use has remained steady since 2012. Because as much as 80% of Metro’s energy consumption is used to power road vehicles, minor gains in vehicle efficiency are poised to have a larger, positive impact on Metro’s overall energy use trend. These efficiency gains are expected to continue as fuel switching becomes more prevalent.


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Energy by End Use:

Metro’s largest energy end use is vehicle fuel for its transportation system. Around 92% of Metro’s energy is used to move vehicles and rail cars, with the remaining 8% used to operate buildings. As Metro continues to transition its fleet to electric buses, the energy needed for bus propulsion will shift from natural gas to electricity:


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