TCI Regional Policy Design Stakeholder Submissions

As a Virginia resident, I have witnessed the increasing vehicle air pollution and periods of dangerous air quality with concern. Reducing vehicle emissions must be a priority for the sake of the health of area residents, particularly children (with developing respiratory systems), and many with health vulnerabilities. Virginia should formally join the regional initiative to reduce emissions and take direct action to invest in clean solutions to achieve reductions in areas that have high levels of pollution.
I am grateful that this regional bipartisan initiative is taking us forward to cleaner air, while the federal government is moving backwards.
Thank you for your consideration.

As a lifelong resident of the Northeast Corridor (Maine-DC), I cannot state more strongly the need for improved public transportation options. Driving from Charlottesville (when I was in college) to New York sometimes took up to 8 hours due to traffic. I now live in the DC area and would prefer to take the train home to visit family, but it is cost prohibitive in comparison to driving. It's ridiculous that the better environmental choice is more expensive monetarily. All of us in the Northeast Corridor (as well as the rest of the country) deserve better options.

Pollution from transportation sources is the largest source of global warming emissions both regionally and nationally. To tackle climate change, it is imperative to reduce pollution from transportation sources. I would like Virginia to formally join the plan to reduce emissions
It is very important that the policy have a strong component of equity by prioritizing clean investments in areas overburdened by pollution and/or for those who don't have access.

I am grateful to you for the bipartisan nature of this project, moving us forward while the federal government moves us back.

Please support development of a low-carbon regional transportation system. We can cut poverty and pollution at the same time. We urge you to move forward with a regional program that prioritizes the needs of communities overburdened with pollution and underserved in mobility options. Time is of the essence in addressing these pressing issues that are facing our communities.

We can cut poverty and pollution at the same time. We urge you to move forward with a regional program that prioritizes the needs of communities overburdened with pollution and underserved in mobility options. Your actions and inactions regarding this and all related concerns have been, are being and will be remembered by all of us who will live in the world that you are shaping with your decisions right now, in addition to being a matter of public record. We are all on it together. Environmental emergencies affect everybody, and will do so for generations to come. All other issues need to be considered as facets of the critical state of the biosphere.

TCI could be well served to consider climate implications of a range of currently utilized U.S. transportation fuels and fuel switch solutions, based on Department of Energy, Department of Transportation, EPA and California longstanding efforts to reduce transportation emissions and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from transportation. In the absence of metrics, the solutions proposed or modeled may be high cost and low impact. If TCI would like help there are a range of technologies that could be considered that could reduce emissions far greater than 19% over a decade. With transportation carbon targeting solutions looking at bang-for-the-buck or taking a greenhouse gas reduction as a metric strategy, deeper cuts could be seen on a faster timescale. Public sources of information from California Low Carbon Fuel Standard is a good peer-state guide. The federal Renewable Fuel Standard is the other long evaluated public tool tracking real metrics. Consider goal of tracking and reducing transportation greenhouse gas emissions with a wider all hands on deck approach rather than limited strategies and see if a TCI model can seek larger benefit for the public good. Consider a policy that has a larger emissions reduction strategy in the region such as 25% and continual evaluation. TCI materials miss a lot of science of transportation emission studies and additional advisors could help the TCI team. Clean transportation investment options seem pretty limited and could use peer review from state clean transportation programs. In Virginia our clean fuel program at Virginia Clean Cities reduces 175,000,000 tons annually and TCI should revisit 2032 goals of 62 total possible million metric tons reduced in 25% scenario to see if this regulatory action could meet or far exceed current single state voluntary annual emission reductions programs - considering the baseline of clean fuel programs goals could be increased with full coordination with DOT and Energy agencies or checking back at assumptions.

Thank you for working to reduce transportation emissions in Virginia and beyond. My feedback is that we should consider reduction targets beyond 25%, and that investments should be allocated in a way that prioritizes zero tailpipe emissions solutions.