Facilities Considering Electric Vehicles
October 13th, 2008 -- Facilities Services is looking into purchasing some electric vehicles, which could be good for Western; economically and environmentally.
Juan Chavira (behind the wheel) and Keith Templeton check out the EZ-GO which could replace the pickup trucks in the background
Paul Morgan, Director of Facilities, thinks that Western could "get rid of some of pickup trucks" that are used for general maintenance of the campus and custodial purposes.
This week Facilities was testing out a "go-cart like" electric vehicle, called an EZ-GO.
"We want to be more environmentally conscious," Morgan said.
He also noted that while exact figures have not been calculated a study could be done to determine how much gasoline could be saved through the use of an electric vehicle fleet.
Drew Jenkins, Associate Vice President of Finance and Administration, commented that "by and large we don't need large vehicles to maintain the campus."
Vehicles such as minivans and pickup trucks can be currently seen navigating campus. Morgan feels that the campus community would appreciate a lower impact type of vehicle.
He did note that while the vehicles would save on gasoline, the electric vehicles would require battery replacements after a couple years.
On whether or not the vehicles would actually be a worthy purchase, Morgan commented, "We are still doing our homework."
Story by: Luke Mehall, assistant director of public relations
