The U.S. Department of Transportation announced Monday that Wisconsin will receive millions in stimulus funding for various state transportation projects.
In a statement, Gov. Jim Doyle’s office announced the state will receive $2 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to go toward the reduction of common, contract and private freight companies’ diesel emissions.
According to the statement, freight companies will use the funds to pay for as much as 50 percent of the cost of pollution-reducing apparatuses, such as diesel truck idling devices, battery air conditioning systems, thermal storage systems and auxiliary power units.
Lee Sensenbrenner, spokesperson for Doyle, said stimulus funding has helped the state in many ways, including job creation.
“[Stimulus funding] has really been crucial in a lot of areas, such as in creating jobs and making real investments that give us a stronger foundation to move forward,” Sensenbrenner said.
Locally, Madison Metro was awarded $150,000 in a nationwide competition in which $100 million was given to transit agencies across the nation in stimulus funding. Madison Metro will use the money to install energy efficient lighting in bus storage and maintenance facilities around the city.
U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood applauded Madison Metro for their commitment to green transportation.
“Madison Metro Transit is showing how investing in green transportation not only helps the planet and strengthens out economy, but also creates jobs here in Wisconsin,” LaHood said in a statement.
In addition to this new funding, Jennifer Bacon, spokesperson for Madison Metro, said a previous stimulus grant will allow Madison Metro to purchase 17 hybrid buses such as those seen around the University of Wisconsin campus.
The new hybrid vehicles, Bacon added, are slated to arrive in Madison next year.
Assembly Committee on Natural Resources Chair Rep. Spencer Black, D-Madison said he thinks the stimulus funds will enhance Wisconsin’s economy.
“Avoiding unnecessary diesel idling can both help the environment and help the economy by reducing wasteful fuel use and reducing pollution,” Black said.
Black also said it is important to reduce the amount of money the state spends on foreign oil, since Wisconsin companies spend $20 billion a year to buy fossil fuels. He added by keeping that money in the state, the state can create more jobs.
Jim Bender, spokesperson for Assembly Minority Leader Rep. Jeff Fitzgerald, R-Horicon, said he is also optimistic about the possible effects of the funding during a harsh economic climate.
“We’re in a state where some of the big trucking companies in Wisconsin are laying off workers, the economy is bad and the tax climate in Wisconsin is really high,” Bender said.
While Bender said job preservation and creation will most likely be an indirect result of a broader focus on environmentally-friendly technology, he said he believes in the possible economic benefits of these stimulus funds.
“These grants could actually turn into things that make the trucks work more efficiently, save on fuel costs and help some of these over-the-road truckers and trucking companies remain competitive,” Bender said.