New electric vehicles, public recharging highlighted at this Macon showcase
The 15th annual clean energy roadshow came to Macon on Wednesday to showcase the latest clean-energy vehicles and technologies to government leaders, planners and fleet managers.
The roadshow is hosted by Public Service Commissioner Tim Echols every year, who led key industry individuals in panel discussions on alternative vehicle fuel sources, updates on municipal and commercial fleet operations and information regarding electric vehicle charging at public facilities.
“The Roadshow has been a labor of love for me since I became a PSC commissioner and dove head-first into all aspects of the energy sector,” Echols said. “At the roadshow, you can see and touch what people are driving, what governments and commercial fleets are utilizing, and learn how to access some of the funding and technical resources available for the supporting charging or fueling infrastructure.”
The event featured new EVs from KIA, Rivian and BlueBird and highlighted Bibb County Schools’ effort to advance their fleet with propane and EV buses. Speakers highlighted workforce development opportunities from Central Georgia Technical College, renewable gas projects with Georgia dairy farms, waste-to-fuel successes and advances in hydrogen production and use.
“Every year we go to different cities ... and we can showcase successes, like we did with Macon today on the propane buses,” Echols said.
Of Bibb County Schools’ 225 buses, well over half run on propane rather than diesel.
“Compared with vehicles fueled by conventional diesel and gasoline, propane vehicles can produce lower amounts of some harmful air pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions, depending on vehicle type, drive cycle, and engine calibration,” the U.S. Department of Energy says.
There was also a segment on clean energy projects and funding opportunities, from Middle Georgia’s $15 million plan to expand EV charging access to Georgia Power’s rebate programs and a new pilot program that will test school buses’ capability to send stored electricity back to the grid.
The roadshow also made stops in Savannah and Lawrenceville.
Echols, a Republican, is up for reelection on Nov. 4.
“For me, as an Evangelical, helping people be a good steward of the environment, of the resources, is an important part of my faith,” Echols said. “And then as a regulator, I just feel like I need to have some experience with this stuff. There’s no other elected official in Georgia, in either party, that can be to the left of me in electric vehicles and solar. I’ve kind of staked it out as my territory, and I feel like I am an expert in it now.”
