Title
Resolution for a Joint Participation Agreement - Service Development Funds for Regional Transit Service (RTS) Biodiesel Project (B)
This item is a request to adopt a Resolution authorizing the City Manager to execute a Joint Participation Agreement between the City of Gainesville and the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) to receive Service Development Funds for implementation of the Biodiesel Project.
Explanation
FDOT allocates service development funds to transit agencies each year. The allocations are given at FDOT discretion on a competitive basis for agency projects that meet FDOT Service Development Grant (SDG) criteria.
In October, 2008, the Regional Transit System (RTS) joined forces with the University of Florida to form an innovative partnership designed to promote the use of alternative energy sources such as biodiesel in mass transit. The objective was to operate 22 RTS buses with biodiesel fuel. The 22 RTS buses have been running on a biodiesel blend named B20 that is a mixture of 20 percent biodiesel and 80 percent petroleum diesel. Feedback from UF students, faculty and staff has been overwhelmingly positive.
The biodiesel program is part of the RTS “Go Green” campaign and its goals are to reduce carbon monoxide emissions, decrease foreign oil dependency, meet clean diesel standards and promote the use of renewable resources.
Since RTS has not experienced any impact on maintenance costs or fuel reliability in the fleet, RTS would like to further expand the use of Biodiesel B20 to the entire fleet of 105 buses. FDOT service development funds are available for this project with 50/50 funding match requirement.
FDOT requires the governing board of each public transit system to adopt a resolution authorizing the acceptance of these funds.
Fiscal Note
This Joint Participation Agreement requires the City of Gainesville to match the funding in the amount of $100,000. Matching funds are allocated in the cu...
Click here for full text