Energy Savings Strategies for Transit Agencies (2013)

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60 APPENDIX A Survey Introduction This survey will inform a Synthesis Report sponsored by the Transit Cooperative Research Program. The report will serve as a guide to transit agencies to save energy in their fleets, facilities, and operations. Documenting transit agencies’ current activities to conserve energy is a crucial part of the report. This survey contains questions about strategies to save energy and energy conservation programs. Your responses to this survey will contribute to the knowledge base of the transit industry. The survey also provides an opportunity for you to identify any new or innovative practices at your agency, which could be highlighted in the synthesis report. Instructions We ask that each agency complete a single survey on a single computer. Your responses are associated with your computer. You can leave and return to the survey at any point, provided that you use the same computer. Clicking the “Done” button at the end of the survey will submit the survey, after which responses cannot be modified. You may need to gather input from your colleagues in order to complete the survey. If you feel that you are not the best person at your agency to complete the survey, please notify Sonya Suter (ssuter@icfi.com) of the appropriate contact. Please contact Sonya Suter (ssuter@icfi.com) regarding any technical difficulties with the survey. The survey should take between 10 and 30 minutes to complete, depending on the amount of activity in energy conservation at your agency. Your assistance is important to advance energy conservation in the transit industry. Thank you for taking the time to participate. Part 1. Background 1. Please provide your contact information: Name: Agency Name: Job Title: E-mail: Phone: City/Town: State: 2. In your judgments, how important are the following to your board of directors or oversight committee? Very important Somewhat important Neutral Somewhat unimportant Very unimportant Reduction of Energy Costs Greater Energy Efficiency Air Pollution Reduction Climate Change Sustainability Service Coverage Service Frequency Low transit fares *3. Is your agency considering or implementing any strategies to reduce energy used by the agency? (These include strategies that reduce fuel or electricity used in transit and non-revenue vehicles, facilities, and construction and maintenance activities, renewable energy generation strategies, and strategies to encourage employees to reduce their energy used.) ___Yes ___No

61 Transit Vehicle Technology Strategies A *4. Is your agency saving energy through strategies related to transit vehicle technology (such as using lighter vehicles powered by alternative propulsion technologies)? ___Yes ___No Transit Vehicle Technology Strategies B 5. Is your agency using any of the following alternative vehicle technologies to save energy in buses? (Check all that apply.) o Hydrogen fuel cell o Battery electric vehicles o Hybrid electric vehicles o N/A (do not operate buses) o None of the above o Other (please specify): 6. Is your agency using any of the following strategies to improve the fuel economy of existing or new buses? (Check all that apply.) o Procure lighter weight vehicles o Improve efficiency of HVAC systems o Improve efficiency of vehicle lighting o N/A (do not operate buses) o None of the above o Other (please specify): 7. Is your agency using any of the following strategies to improve the fuel economy of existing or new rail cars? (Check all that apply.) o Switch to lighter weight vehicles o Regenerative braking o Improve efficiency of HVAC systems o Improve efficiency of vehicle lighting o Minimize electric transmission losses o N/A (do not operate rail) o None of the above o Other (please specify): 8. Briefly describe your agency’s use of strategies selected above (Questions 5–7). Have they been considered successful or unsuccessful? 9. Do you have information on the actual or expected impacts of transit vehicle technology strategies at your transit agency? Impacts include fuel or electricity saved, cost or cost savings, and co-benefits or other impacts such as changes to transit service or environmental impacts. o Yes [please describe the impacts and how impacts were measured. Forward any supplementary documents to Sonya Suter, ssuter@icfi.com] o No If you answered “Yes,” please describe: Transit Vehicle Operations and Maintenance Strategies A 10. Is your agency saving energy through transit vehicle operations and maintenance strategies (such as anti-idling policies or driver training)? Transit Vehicle Operations and Maintenance Strategies B 11. Please check all strategies that your agency is using: o Use of anti-idling technologies or policies o Driver training for eco-driving/operation of vehicles o Maintenance programs to improve fuel efficiency o Other (please specify):

62 12. Briefly describe your agency’s use of strategies selected above. Have they been considered successful or unsuccessful? 13. Do you have information on the actual or expected impacts of transit vehicle operations and maintenance strategies at your transit agency? Impacts include fuel or electricity saved, cost or cost savings, and co-benefits or other impacts such as changes to transit service or environmental impacts. o Yes [please describe the impacts and how impacts were measured. Forward any supplementary documents to Sonya Suter, ssuter@icfi.com] o No If you answered “Yes,” please describe: Transit Service Design Strategies A *14. Is your agency saving energy through transit service design strategies (such as signal priority for transit vehicles or layover timing)? ___Yes ___No Transit Service Design Strategies B 15. Please check all strategies that your agency is using: o Off-board fare payment o GIS tracking of transit vehicles o Automatic vehicle dispatch and management for traffic flow o Layover timing o Signal priority for transit vehicles o Stop spacing o Use of demand response service when demand not sufficient for fixed-route service o Other (please specify): 16. Does your agency consider energy savings in designing transit service? ___Yes ___No Impacts of Service Design Strategies 17. Briefly describe your agency’s use of service design strategies to save energy selected above. Have they been considered successful or unsuccessful? 18. Do you have information on the actual or expected impacts of transit service design strategies at your agency? Impacts include fuel or electricity saved, cost or cost savings, and co-benefits or other impacts such as changes to transit service or environmental impacts. o Yes [please describe the impacts and how impacts were measured. Forward any supplementary documents to Sonya Suter, ssuter@icfi.com] o No If you answered “Yes,” please describe: Non-Revenue Vehicle Strategies A *19. Is your agency saving energy through non-revenue vehicle strategies? ___Yes ___No Non-Revenue Vehicle Strategies B 20. Please check all strategies that your agency is using: o Hydrogen vehicles o Battery electric vehicles o Hybrid electric vehicles o Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles o Reductions in fleet size o Trip chaining or other trip reduction measures o Use of anti-idling technologies or policies o Driver training for eco-driving/operation of vehicles o Maintenance programs to improve fuel efficiency o Other (please specify): 21. Briefly describe your agency’s use of strategies selected above. Have they been considered successful or unsuccessful?

63 22. Do you have information on the actual or expected impacts of strategies pertaining to non-revenue vehicles at your transit agency? Impacts include fuel or electricity saved, cost or cost savings, and co-benefits or other impacts such as changes to transit service or environmental impacts. o Yes [please describe the impacts and how impacts were measured. Forward any supplementary documents to Sonya Suter, ssuter@icfi.com] o No If you answered “Yes,” please describe: Construction and Maintenance Strategies A *23. Is your agency saving energy used in construction activities and maintenance yards (through strategies such as using recycled materials and more efficient equipment)? ___Yes ___No Construction and Maintenance Strategies B 24. Please check all strategies your agency is using: o Strategies to reduce energy used in maintenance yards o Strategies to reduced energy used in construction and maintenance equipment o Use of alternative (recycled) construction materials o Sourcing materials locally o Recycling construction waste o Reuse of building materials to reduce waste o Other (please specify): 25. Briefly describe your agency’s use of strategies selected above. Have they been considered successful or unsuccessful? 26. Do you have information on the actual or expected impacts of strategies to reduce energy consumption from construction or maintenance? Impacts include fuel or electricity saved, cost or cost savings, and co-benefits or other impacts such as changes to transit service or environmental impacts. o Yes [please describe the impacts and how impacts were measured. Forward any supplementary documents to Sonya Suter, ssuter@icfi.com] o No If you answered “Yes,” please describe: Power Generation Strategies A *27. Is your agency saving energy through power generation strategies (such as generating solar energy on site)? ___Yes ___No Power Generation Strategies B 28. Please check forms of renewable energy that your agency is using: o Solar o Wind o Geothermal o Fuel cells o Other (please specify): 29. Briefly describe your agency’s use of strategies selected above. Have they been considered successful or unsuccessful? 30. Do you have information on the actual or expected impacts of power generation strategies at your transit agency? Impacts include fuel or electricity saved, cost or cost savings, and co-benefits or other impacts such as changes to transit service or environmental impacts. o Yes [please describe the impacts and how impacts were measured. Forward any supplementary documents to Sonya Suter, ssuter@icfi.com] o No If you answered “Yes,” please describe: Energy at Stations and Stops A *31. Is your agency saving energy through strategies to save energy at stations and stops (through strategies such as efficient lighting)? ___Yes ___No

64 Energy at Stations and Stops B 32. Is your agency saving energy at transit stations and stops (through strategies such as efficient lighting)? o Solar-powered lighting at stations or stops o LED lighting at stations or stops o Efficient heating or cooling in stations o Other (please specify): 33. Briefly describe your agency’s use of strategies selected above. Have they been considered successful or unsuccessful? 34. Do you have information on the actual or expected impacts of strategies to save energy at stations and stops? Impacts include fuel or electricity saved, cost or cost savings, and co-benefits or other impacts such as changes to transit service or environmental impacts. o Yes [please describe the impacts and how impacts were measured. Forward any supplementary documents to Sonya Suter, ssuter@icfi.com] o No If you answered “Yes,” please describe: Office Facilities and Other Buildings A *35. Is your agency saving energy through strategies related to building energy use? ___Yes ___No Office Facilities and Other Buildings B 36. Please check all strategies that your agency is using: o Upgrading to more efficient lighting o Install automatic timers/sensors for lighting o Upgrading to more efficient appliances and computers o Enhancing building insulation o Installing passive heating or cooling systems o Achieving LEED certification o Water conservation measures o Use of green/recycled materials o Waste diversion/recycling programs o None of the above o Other (please specify): 37. Briefly describe your agency’s use of strategies selected above. Have they been considered successful or unsuccessful? 38. Do you have information on the actual or expected impacts of strategies to reduce energy from facilities and other buildings at your transit agency? Impacts include fuel or electricity saved, cost or cost savings, and co-benefits or other impacts such as changes to transit service or environmental impacts. o Yes [please describe the impacts and how impacts were measured. Forward any supplementary documents to Sonya Suter, ssuter@icfi.com] o No If you answered “Yes,” please describe: Workforce Management Practices A *39. Is your agency saving energy through workforce management practices? ___Yes ___No Workforce Management Practices B 40. Please check all strategies that your agency is using: o Encouraging ridesharing or vanpool participation o Providing transit benefits o Allowing for compressed work weeks or telework o Providing bike benefits or bike amenities (bike racks or showers on site) o None of the above o Other (please specify):

65 41. Briefly describe your agency’s use of strategies selected above. Have they been considered successful or unsuccessful? 42. Do you have information on the actual or expected impacts of workforce management practices at your transit agency? Impacts include fuel or electricity saved, cost or cost savings, and co-benefits or other impacts such as changes to transit service or environmental impacts. o Yes [please describe the impacts and how impacts were measured. Forward any supplementary documents to Sonya Suter, ssuter@icfi.com] o No If you answered “Yes,” please describe: Other Strategies 43. Is your agency using or considering any other strategies to save energy not mentioned above? Please describe. Planning and Implementing Strategies 44. Do you have any formal procedures or practices to evaluate and compare strategies for saving energy? Examples could include use of benefit-cost, return on investment, or net present value analyses. If yes, please describe below. 45. How are you financing your adoption of energy saving strategies? Some options include bonding for major investments, use of state or federal tax credits, or supplementary funding from state, regional, or local governments. 46. What, if any strategic planning techniques are you using to select or implement energy saving strategies? Check all that apply. o Establishing reduction goals, objectives, and performance measures o Developing agency policy statements o Developing an agency energy or sustainability plan o Establishing an energy or environmental management system o None of the above o Other (please specify): 47. If you selected a strategic planning technique above, please explain: 48. What challenges has your agency experienced with implementing energy saving strategies? Please check all that apply. o Upfront costs required to implement strategies o Time required to realize benefits from strategies o Lack of internal expertise or staff time available o Lack of decision maker/stakeholder support o Unsure of strategy effectiveness o No challenges o Other (please specify): 49. What other factors are important in your consideration and implementation of energy saving strategies? Please check all that apply. o State and/or regional mandates for energy efficiency or reduction o Communicating with decision makers, stakeholders, or the general public o Co-benefits of energy saving strategies such as congestion reduction, air quality improvement, cost savings, or others o Presence of champions of energy saving strategies within the agency o Public/customer desire for energy savings o Other (please specify): Case Study Identification 50. If selected, would you be willing to serve as a case study for this TCRP synthesis report? ___Yes ___No 51. Do you have any suggestions of other agencies that we should survey and/or consider as case studies? Agency: Contact Name: Contact E-mail: Agency: Contact Name: Contact E-mail:

66 52. What would you most like to see provided in this TCRP synthesis of practice? 53. Is there any additional information you would like to provide related to energy savings strategies, selection of energy savings strategies at your agency, or any other related topic? If there is any additional documentation you can provide, please forward this to ssuter@icfi.com. Closing and Thank You Thank you for taking the time to participate in the survey. Your responses will be used to inform a synthesis of practice about energy saving strategies in use at transit agencies around the country and will be a resource for others. If you have any additional questions about the survey, please do not hesitate to contact Sonya Suter (ssuter@icfi.com, 703-225- 2866). Once you have hit “done,” your survey will be submitted and you will not be able to edit your responses without contacting us directly.