MCE & Partners Aim to Reduce Emissions and Combat Climate Change

Drive Clean Bay Area is a collaborative effort spanning nine counties and involving three of the region’s forward-thinking multi-jurisdictional organizations. The new campaign focuses on educating and motivating Bay Area residents and employees to replace their internal combustion vehicles with electric vehicles (EV) or electric bikes.

Drive Clean Bay Area melds marketing sophistication with grassroots community and business events and enables more than seven million households to participate in EV group purchases and leases.

“When you replace your fossil-fuel car with an EV and drive on clean energy, you reduce your carbon footprint 40-50%,” said Carleen Cullen, co-founder of Drive Clean and Cool the Earth, a Marin-based environmental nonprofit. “It’s the single most important action you can take yet studies find Bay Area consumers lack awareness or are misinformed.”

Cullen touted the innovative group purchase and lease program. “We’re working with Cartelligent, a Bay Area car buying and leasing service, to bring together buyers in a program designed to save hundreds to thousands of dollars per vehicle,” she said. “Drive Clean Marin will launch with an electric vehicle event at College of Marin, underscoring the commitment of regional leaders and residents to make a difference in the fight against climate change.”

Drive Clean Bay Area is co-sponsored by MCE, Transportation Authority of Marin, and the Bay Area Air Quality Management District.

“The Air District’s focus is to improve air quality, protect public health and reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions. In addition to transportation alternatives such as carpooling and transit use, driving electric is an important part of our regional solutions and an important part of my personal commitment,” Katie Rice, Marin County Supervisor and Chair of the Bay Area Air Quality Management District Board of Directors.”

Nicholas Nguyen, Principal Project Delivery Manager for the Transportation Authority of Marin, said:

“Increased public awareness is an important part of EV adoption. TAM is glad to be a guiding resource and funding partner in this effort to combat climate change and accelerate the transition to fossil-free transportation. While TAM advocates for carpooling and alternative modes of transportation to reduce congestion and emissions, we know EVs offer a clean choice when the other options are not available. Working together, we can make a big difference.”

Drive Clean Bay Area boasts more than a dozen NGOs collaborating in the effort. The campaign is first launching in Marin, Contra Costa and Napa Counties and has received preliminary endorsement from Drawdown: Marin, a community-driven initiative to design and implement local solutions that reduce and reverse Marin’s contribution to climate change.

About Cool the Earth: The nonprofit organization, started by Marin resident and volunteer Carleen Cullen in 2006, has a mission to inspire personal action to reduce carbon emissions. Cool the Earth Schools has reached nearly 500,000 parents and kids nationwide. The organization is now engaged in co-launching a new campaign, Drive Clean Bay Area, with a focus on inspiring low- and no-carbon transportation.

The Bay Area Air Quality Management District is the regional agency responsible for protecting air quality and the global climate in the nine-county Bay Area. Connect with the Air District via Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube.

About MCE: MCE is California’s first Community Choice Aggregation Program, a not-for-profit, public agency that began service in 2010 with the goals of providing cleaner power at stable rates to its customers, reducing greenhouse emissions, and investing in targeted energy programs that support communities’ energy needs. MCE is a load-serving entity supporting approximately 1,000 MW peak load. MCE provides electricity service to approximately 470,000 customer accounts and more than 1 million residents and businesses in 34 member communities across 4 Bay Area counties: Napa, Marin, Contra Costa, and Solano. For more information about MCE, visit mceCleanEnergy.org.

About TAM: The Transportation Authority of Marin (TAM) plays a major role in improving the quality of life for Marin County residents and developing and maintaining the economic viability of our local region by funding transportation projects and programs that improve mobility, reduce congestion, and provide a transportation system with more options for those living, working, visiting and traveling in Marin County.

TAM administers the expenditure plans for Measure A the ½ cent sales tax measure passed in 2004, renewed as Measure AA in 2018, and Measure B, the $10 Vehicle Registration Fee passed in 2010. TAM also serves as Marin’s Congestion Management Agency and is responsible for coordinating funding for many of the transportation projects and programs in the County.TAM coordinates the diverse mix of projects and programs that are necessary for improving overall mobility, including roads, highways, sidewalks, Safe Routes to School, bicycle lanes, transit and alternative commute options.