Fight against climate change could include goal to reduce driving in Minnesota

Minnesotans may be urged to put down the car keys in a new effort to cut greenhouse gas emissions from transportation and fight climate change.

The House Sustainable Transportation Act would build more stations for charging electric cars and swapping batteries, push local governments to electrify their fleets and prod the Metropolitan Council to electrify all its buses by 2040, among other things.

It would also put into statute a new statewide goal to reduce vehicle miles driven by at least 20% by 2050.

A handful of states, including California and Washington, have set concrete targets, according to Move Minnesota, a transit advocacy group.

The measure was discussed in an informational hearing Thursday in the House Transportation Finance and Policy Committee. Committee Chairman Frank Hornstein, a Minneapolis DFLer, is the item's lead author.

Electric vehicles alone won't get the state on track with legislated goals for cutting greenhouse gases, Hornstein told the committee. Transportation is the largest source of emissions, and electric vehicles are still less than 1% of new vehicle sales.

"We have a long way to go, and driving less really is one of the key ways we can reduce greenhouse gases," Hornstein said. "We are going to have to do things differently."

Sam Rockwell, executive director of Move Minnesota, agreed that Minnesota's slow shift to electric vehicles isn't enough and won't happen fast enough for climate change timelines.

"Reducing vehicle miles traveled in Minnesota is essential," Rockwell said.

Rockwell suggested setting interim benchmarks for the target to keep the state on track and adding mechanisms to ensure the reductions can be enforced.

He also noted that it doesn't make sense to ask people in rural areas to ditch their cars. Urban residents will need to curb their driving more than 20% "to make up for the geographic difference." To make those urban reductions work, he said, everyone needs to be within a half-mile of reliable transit.

Tim Sexton, assistant commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT), said he supports the measure and driving reduction goal. It is consistent with the recommendations of a MnDOT advisory council on sustainable transportation that met for one year, he said.

Rep. John Petersburg, R-Waseca, said he applauds the intent but has serious concerns. The measure lacks financials, he said.

The bill will likely be incorporated into a House transportation omnibus bill, and it's expected to face opposition in the Republican-controlled Senate.

Regardless of the legislative outcome, the driving reduction goal is gaining traction at the state level. Last week, in its official response to the advisory council's recommendations, MnDOT committed to adopting a preliminary goal of cutting vehicle miles traveled by 20% by 2050. The goal will be finalized after more work.

It's a major shift for the state agency that has long tracked vehicle miles driven and indicated the need to drive less, but has never committed to something specific in writing. In an interview, MnDOT's Sexton called a driving reduction policy goal an "important first step."

"Implementation is something that we would need to work with partners to figure out," he said.

Jennifer Bjorhus • 612-673-4683