Clean Energy Works: Utilities drive oil out of transit with PAYS

Innovative financing in the utility sector can accelerate fossil-free transportation, starting with clean transit.

The Problem

Oil dependence is a hazard on multiple fronts - geopolitical, economic, and environmental. Nearly one quarter of global GHG pollution comes from oil used in transportation. Achieving fossil freedom and climate stabilization requires massive and sustained investment. Although electric transit buses have the best business case for investment, the upfront cost is 50% higher than a comparable diesel bus. In the U.S. alone, nearly a billion dollars in electric bus orders have been deferred for lack of federal funding. We need a financing solution.

The Solution

Electric utilities stand to gain the most from driving oil out of the transportation sector, and they already deploy capital at an enormous scale worldwide. Pay As You Save (PAYS) is a highly scalable utility investment solution for energy efficiency upgrades in buildings (U.S.) and appliances (India). Why not in transportation, too? With PAYS, a utility can drop the upfront cost premium for clean transit by 90% while still assuring its own cost recovery. Best of all, bus riders benefit first, and more types of vehicle can follow.