Michigan can and should be a leader in solving the climate crisis that’s been flooding our communities, burning the west, and making storms much worse. Climate solutions can create jobs of the future and more affordable, attractive communities in the process.
Yet the draft plan that the Governor’s Climate Office came out with in January doesn’t get us where we need to go and we’ve got until March 14 to fix it! (deadline extended!)
Michigan needs MORE specific and aggressive goals and timelines. And Michigan deserves MORE state efforts to make climate change a priority.
Hundreds of Michigan residents and organizations have spoken out to demand a stronger plan, including flooding three virtual public comment meetings the state Department of Energy, Great Lakes, and the Environment (EGLE) held in late January and early February.
Take action today to demand an improved plan:
- You can write your own personal letter to the Governor’s staff detailing your concerns and suggestions and send it to at EGLE-ClimateSolutions@Michigan.gov by March 14.
- Or in just 90 seconds, you can use our quick letter tool to echo our comments (summarized below and in the sample letter).
What’s in the draft plan?
It supports all new buses be electric by 2030, specifically:
“Build the infrastructure to support 2 million electric vehicles on Michigan roads by 2030. This should include… 100% of public transit vehicles and school buses sold that year.”
It also includes broad support for public transit:
“Invest in a cleaner, more efficient public transit system”
“Combine these efforts with micro mobility, “last mile” transit options, and bike and walking trails and infrastructure to offer the broadest range of options to residents.”
It includes numerous statements about the benefits of transit, including:
Expanding access to public transit in Michigan will yield well-established reductions in commuting costs for Michigan families. . . .
Expanding access to safe and convenient public transit and biking options will play a vital role … [as] are a cornerstone of advancing equity. . . .
Public transportation is also critical to meet the transportation needs of seniors and those with disabilities. . . .
Talent attraction and community development opportunities also accompany wise investments in public transportation. Studies have shown that young professionals favor locations with rich transit, biking, and walking options when choosing where to live, and establishing transit hubs can spur rippling investment in—and prosperity for—surround commercial enterprises.
– Draft MI Healthy Climate Plan comments on transit benefits
What’s needed but has been left out
Because transportation is the number one source of climate pollution and EVs can’t solve it alone, for nearly a year, TRU has been urging the Council on Climate Solutions to give Michiganders more choices for getting around than only driving, especially walking, biking, and taking transit. We provided numerous detailed recommendations of ways to decrease GHG emissions, starting by tracking the impact of transportation on the climate crisis and requiring that transportation plans address the climate crisis.
Unfortunately, no where in the draft Climate Plan is any reference to the need to decrease how much people drive, let alone developing targets or action plans to encourage and enable decreasing driving!
No where does the Plan tell MDOT or other transportation agencies to track how much their projects contribute to the climate crisis or include that climate impact in their decision-making.
Despite broad support among the Transportation and Mobility Workgroup, several of their recommendations were left out:
- Recommendation #4 is completely left out: “MDOT and other road agencies should develop plans for implementing GHG budgets into their transportation planning”
- Recommendation #5 is only vaguely alluded to: “MDOT, MPOs, and providers should develop comprehensive plans to expand access to convenient, zero emission public transit throughout Michigan, with a goal of increasing the state’s investment by an amount great enough to support the mobility needs of the state’s residents”
- Second tier recommendations #6 and #7 area also completely left out: “Encourage more trips by bicycling and walking” and CMAQ funding only for projects that decrease VMT and reduce GHG emissions
Notes – These are TRU’s concerns about the transit related parts of the plan. As a plan to tackle the entire climate crisis, it’s a huge plan especially focused on renewable energy and electric vehicles. You may want to review the draft Climate Plan yourself and/or see what other groups have to say about it, like the Michigan Climate Action Network, the Ecology Center, NRDC, and League of Conservation Voters.
Please Speak Out NOW for a Strong Climate Plan!
- You can write your own personal letter to the Governor’s staff detailing your concerns and suggestions and send it to at EGLE-ClimateSolutions@Michigan.gov by March 14.
- Or in just 90 seconds, you can use our quick letter tool to echo our comments (summarized below and in the sample letter).
- Then urge your friends and family to do the same!
Together we’ll make sure transit is a major part of the final MI Healthy Climate Plan and make Michigan transportation part of the climate solution!