Peter,
Overall I would say that the choice of an electric street sweeper is a good
choice. However, it is also important to discuss what type of sweeper the city
is considering. They are pros and cons to the various mechanisms of pick up
that sweepers are equipped with.
Hopefully, we aren’t looking at the simple mechanical, basically a rotating
bristle broom. Typically called a cosmetic clean because it only picks up large
trash and leaves the real pollutants behind.
After that there are various types of vacuum sweepers, the worst of which ends
up throwing all the small particulates back up into the air. There are also
regenerative and high-efficiency models, but I don’t know if any are ev.
Has the City considered co-owning with the County or a nearby city? We
certainly don’t plan on constant use, do we‽
Roger’s idea is a good one, but we need to make sure that residents who live on
streets with parking only on one side are not left hanging!
Mark
Email from the Id
On Sep 23, 2021, at 4:51 PM, Roger McGary <ramcgary@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Good move from my view. As to solving the sweeping problem why not consider
“other side of the street parking” to allow a sweep of parking areas? Would
take some coordination, but not impossible. Develop it by either wards or
known areas (i.e. North Takoma) for a given day of the month…..roger
From: north-takoma-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx <north-takoma-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
On Behalf Of Peter Kovar
Sent: Thursday, September 23, 2021 12:45 PM
To: pen@xxxxxxxxxxx; north-takoma <north-takoma@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>;
HodgesHeights@xxxxxxxxx
Subject: [north-takoma] Update on EV Street Sweeper Purchase
Dear Neighbors:
Given all the interest in and discussion on the question of whether the City
should purchase the more expensive EV street sweeper or go with a
diesel-powered vehicle, I wanted to let residents know that the Council voted
in favor of purchasing the EV version last night on a 4 - 3 vote. I voted yes.
For me it was a complicated issue with valid arguments both in favor of and
in opposition to the purchase. I do think it’s important that we have a
street sweeper in order to keep our gutters clean, so I didn’t see doing
nothing as an option (and I’d add that I’d like us to explore having a system
that would shift cars off the streets that are scheduled for sweeping to make
the process more effective).
Beyond that, since we have adopted a climate framework oriented toward the
use of electric vehicles, considering that there wasn’t an immediately
identified alternative purpose which would yield greater greenhouse gas
benefits, because this was a vehicle we’d have for at least 10 years, and
given that the additional funds were already in the budget, I reached the
conclusion that on balance it made more sense to support the purchase.
For those who would like to understand more about the points the Council
weighed prior to the vote, I encourage you to watch the video of the
discussion from last night’s Council meeting. You can see that here starting
at 3:07:
https://takomaparkmd.gov/government/city-council/meetings-and-documents/city-council-video/.
My part begins at 3:31. And of course I’m available to discuss this matter
in more detail if anyone would like to do so.
Peter Kovar
Takoma Park City Council
Ward One
240-319-6281
www.councilmemberkovar.com
(He, Him, His)
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