Every Day is Earth Day at HART!

Over 50 years ago, the first Earth Day was held around the country with over 20 million people participating in the event to create awareness and appreciation for the Earth's natural beauty. One day out of 365 days to appreciate the Earth and protect it. Shouldn't the Earth be a concern... every day? That's the thought process at HART. What we do naturally has a connection with "green", through taking cars off the road, reducing carbon emissions and providing for more walkable communities. 

In fact, the American Public Transportation (APTA), shows that public transportation saves the United States 4.2 billion gallons of gas annually and saves the U.S. $13.7 billion in congestion each year! As an organization, we feel it's necessary to be a responsible organization focused on environmental sustainability. That's why we don't just rest on the numbers above. HART has taken a number of steps to ensure that as an organization we are doing our part for the planet. With over 800 employees and 200+ vehicles, the meat and potatoes are in the waste that HART recycles during our day-to-day maintenance and operating of our organization.

Here are some of the steps that HART takes in regards to our fleet vehicles:

• The entire fleet is EPA-certified
  

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  HART operates 85 CNG buses

  Began fleet transition to cleaner-burner Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) in 2014; currently operating 85 CNG vehicles
• Since 2014, the HART fleet has reduced Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions by 20%, the equivalent of removing over 3,000 cars off the road!
• Waste oil, used non-crushed oil filters, coolant, scrap metal, aluminium is all recycled
• Freon is reused after being captured by a reclaim system
• HART purchases recycled and environmentally-friendly coolants
• Use of synthetic oils, which extends the life of the oil and minimizes the number of times we have to drain it
• 80% recyclable vehicle wash systems

Steps HART takes in regards to our transit facilities:

• Waterless urinals and low-water consumption equipment are in place
• Solar film was installed at Marion Transit Center to improve cooling efficiency
• Motion sensor lights in restroom facilities
• Electric hand dryers
• Fluorescent bulbs are crushed; glass remains and mercury are recycled
• All chemicals and cleaners are green-certified
• Use of non-aerosol sprays
• No-VOC (Volatile Organic Compound) paints that can have pretty serious health effects (liver/kidney damage)
• Bus shelters utilize solar panels for lighting
• All office paper, batteries, copier toner cartridges and electronic circuit boards are recycled

With over 800+ employees, 200+ vehicles, and 7.7 million miles traveled by our service vehicles last year, you can imagine just how much waste is recycled. 

HART also took the "LEED" during the renovation of our HART Operations Facility into a Leadership into Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certified building. The redesign introduced a slew of new windows into the building, taking advantage of natural lighting. Light-emitting diode (LED) lighting (consuming 50% less electricity than fluorescent lighting) also features throughout the building. 

The name of the game is sustainability. Using public transportation is one of a variety of possible sustainable commutes, but know that beyond the buses, vans and streetcars, HART is doing its part for the environment! 

Find out how much you can reduce your carbon footprint by using the Carbon Savings Calculator.

HART Achieves Prestigious Environmental & Sustainability Certification!

HART is 1 of 13 transit agencies in US to be ISO 14001 certified

HART recently received an official ISO 14001 Certification for its Environmental Sustainability and Management System (ESMS). Audit firm, DQS Inc., has certified HART as one of only 13 transit agencies in the country and the only transit system in Florida to achieve International Organization for Standardization's (ISO) 14001 Standard.

Sounds good, right? But, what does it mean?

Jeff Seward, HART Chief Financial Officer explains.

"Developing an ISO 14001 certified Environmental and Sustainability Management System (ESMS) program provides assurance to our community, stakeholders, and employees that our operations and services are environmentally friendly. Now that we're certified, the ESMS also provides a framework for us to continuously take steps to reduce pollution and continually improve our environmental footprint on the Tampa Bay region."

HART began work to achieve this certification in 2013 when it was accepted to the Federal Transit Administration's (FTA) ISO 14001 EMS Institute at Virginia Tech University. A two-year program, the academy is designed to help transit agencies develop and implement an ESMS, using the ISO 14001 Standard. ISO is an independent, non-governmental organization that brings together experts to share knowledge and develop standards that provide solutions to global challenges such as environmental management.

Our ESMS provides improved internal controls

These management tools enable an organization to control the environmental impact of its activities and represent a structured approach to setting environmental objectives and targets. Fulfilling the requirements of the standard demands objective evidence which can be audited to demonstrate that the environmental management system is operating effectively in conformance with the standard. Benefits include higher conformance with legislative and regulatory requirements, improved efficiency, minimized risk of regulatory and environmental fines, reductions in waste and consumption of resources, and better internal controls.

The FTA has sponsored four ESMS academies, each with a class of 10 transit agencies. Of those, 13 have gone on to become ISO 14001 certified and HART is the only one in Florida, placing it in the upper echelon of transit agencies that have made a commitment to the environment.

In terms of ridership, the other thirteen transit systems are diverse. Several transit agencies are close to our size; Foothill Transit in California provided more than 14 million rides in 2015. Sound Transit in Seattle is over twice our size and provides 28 million rides a year; Lane Transit District (LTD) in Oregon provides an average of 11 million rides a year. Another peer with the certification is the nation's third largest transit provider, Los Angeles Metro, which provided 453 million boardings in 2015. Agencies of all sizes are making the commitment. Pursuing this level of environmental performance makes for a safer, cleaner environment.