Energy Efficient Improvements
to the Metropolitan Transit Authority

By Larry Siegel

I’ve long been interested in keeping abreast of news pertaining to developments in the area of energy efficiency, wind power, solar power and other forms of renewable energy. Towards that end I subscribe to various newsletters put out by organizations such as the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), the Rocky Mountain Institute (which recently published a fascinating peer reviewed book “Reinventing Fire: Bold Solutions for the New Energy Era” that maps out a plan for running a 158%-bigger U.S. economy by 2050 without needing fossil fuels or nuclear power plants) and Greenjobs.com which reports on developments in the areas of solar, wind, alternative fuel sources such as biofuels, hydrogen and fuel cells.

Pursuing my interest in these areas I contacted the Metropolitan Transit Authority headquarters in New York to see what, if any, energy efficient improvements they are pursuing. I was pleasantly surprised to learn there is quite a lot going on – more than I can cover in one blog post. Here are some items worth noting:

• Heating, cooling and ventilation upgrades to the equipment in Grand Central Station will save $3 million a year and reduce Metro-North Railroad’s annual carbon emissions by 10,000 tons.
• Replacing incandescent bulbs with advanced technology light-emitting diodes (LEDs) will reduce electricity consumption by at least 1.04 megawatts per year, saving at least $500,000 annually.
• Replacing vapor necklace lights on the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, Robert F. Kennedy Bridge, the Throgs Neck Bridge and the Bronx-Whitestone Bridge with high efficiency LEDs will reduce electricity costs by 73%. 832 lights at the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel were replaced with high-efficiency lighting, saving 500,000 kilowatts a year or $55,000 annually.
• The Long Island Railroad is completing a train car wash facility in Babylon that will filter, recondition and reuse more than 70% of its wash water. In addition, solar power energy panels for the facility will save an estimated $6,700 a year on utility costs.

About the Author: Larry Siegel has worked as a writer of corporate policies and procedures and as a technical writer. He currently works as a Pesticide Community Outreach Specialist for the Pesticide and Toxic Substances Branch in Edison, NJ

Editor's Note: The opinions expressed in Greenversations are those of the author. They do not reflect EPA policy, endorsement, or action, and EPA does not verify the accuracy or science of the contents of the blog.