Target Airshed Grant (TAG) to Electrify PRT Buses The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) selected Allegheny County’s Targeted Airshed Grant proposal for funding. This grant will directly address environmental and health inequities in the Mon Valley through the replacement of diesel buses with new zero-emission vehicles for the Pittsburgh Regional Transit (PRT). The $10 million grant will provide the county with the necessary funding to replace four 40-foot PRT diesel transit buses. These new buses will serve riders in the Mon Valley area. The grant will also support the purchase and installation of two electric chargers along with necessary infrastructure in the garage to which the buses would be assigned. The new zero-emission buses are anticipated to be purchased and put into service in 2026. Zero-emission buses have been shown to contribute to healthier communities, especially communities that are classified as high need by environmental justice indexes, like EJScreen or the environmental justice index developed by the Allegheny County Health Department. The Mon Valley is a major travel corridor. Pittsburgh Regional Transit operates 23 bus routes serving the Mon Valley carrying 52,400 riders on an average weekday. Seven routes operate on PRT’s Martin Luther King, Jr. East Busway which reduces trip times for riders traveling between Mon Valley communities, Pittsburgh’s Oakland neighborhood and downtown.
as tree canopy expansion projects in Mon Valley Communities. This effort aligned with ACHD’s ongoing efforts to improve air quality across Allegheny County, particularly in the Mon Valley. Vehicle electrification reduces greenhouse gas and PM2.5 emissions. According to data collected and analyzed by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, vehicle PM2.5 emissions contribute approximately 25 percent of all air pollution in Allegheny County. The ACHD Air Quality Program focused on those municipalities that are covered under the Mon Valley Air Pollution Episode Rule. With the support from the Board of Health, the Air Quality Program awarded grants for electric refuse and recycling haulers for Swissvale and West Mifflin and an electric street sweeper for the eleven Mon Valley municipalities of the Steel River Council of Government. Tree canopies can contribute to removing air pollution and providing other benefits. With the support of the Board of Health, the Air Quality Program awarded grants for tree canopy expansion to the Woodland Hills and Steel Valley School Districts in partnership with Tree Pittsburgh. Redesignation for PM2.5 and Sulfur Dioxide (SO2) In November of 2022, the Health Department’s Air Quality program submitted a request to redesignate or relabel Allegheny County as having achieved the goals laid out in the Clean Air Act and the 2012 National Ambient Air Quality Standards for PM2.5. In October 2023, the Air Quality program submitted another request to redesignate or relabel Allegheny County, this time for having achieved the goals laid out in the Clean
Clean Air Fund Projects The Allegheny County Health Department’s Air Quality program awarded $2.29 million in funding to support municipal fleet electrification as well
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