Lee Grannis
Bethany 06542
203-627-3715
nhcleancities.org
If you’re looking for the guy in Connecticut who knows everything and anything about green transportation, Lee Grannis is your man. He is your bio-fuel expert.
The Bethany resident heads the Greater New Haven Clean Cities Coalition, which has a goal of promoting air quality, public health, energy security and economic development — all while decreasing our dependence on foreign oil.
It’s just a day’s work for Grannis. Originally from Kentucky, he met his wife in the army during the Vietnam War. The retired army officer and nurse moved to Connecticut, where she still works at Yale-New Haven Hospital as a neonatal nurse.
In 1995, after volunteering with the Special Olympics, Grannis was approached by the U.S. Department of Energy about designating New Haven a “clean city.” The Clean Cities Coalition was born and a few years later, Grannis took the helm. With the power of an army officer — but no army of soldiers to support him — he tackled the job.
Now Connecticut has the second-largest hybrid bus fleet (600) in the country, behind only California. The buses boast a 25- to 35-percent improvement in fuel economy, and a 50- to 90-percent
reduction in emissions over diesel buses.
Grannis says Connecticut has had a lot of firsts when it comes to clean transportation, but the war is not yet won.
In 2002, three electric trolleys — the plug-charge-and-go type — hit the streets of downtown New Haven. After their first year of operation, each traveled an average of 10,000 miles while carrying nearly 5,000 passengers per month. Use of these trolleys displaced nearly 2,000 gallons of diesel fuel that would have been used by equivalent diesel shuttle buses each year. In 2008, citing lack of funds, the city pulled the plug on the buses.
In April 2007, with help from Grannis and the coalition, CTTransit unveiled its hybrid fuel cell bus — a first for New England. The fuel cell bus still operates in Hartford.
The coalition is one of four in the state of Connecticut that work to share information, outreach and technical information about alternative fuels and vehicles. The GNHCCC is a chapter of the Washington, D.C. based Transportation Energy Partnership.
What’s behind is satisfying to Grannis, but he’s more excited about what’s to come.
Last year, Green Cities became one of 25 recipients of Recovery Act grants aimed at funding development for a range of energy-efficient and advanced vehicle technologies.
The $13.1 million Department of Energy grant is being used to deploy 163 compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicles and 18 heavy duty liquefied natural gas (LNG) refuse trucks throughout Connecticut.
Since the vehicles will need somewhere to fuel, infrastructure also needs to be in place, so three CNG stations, one combined B20/CNG/Electric station, one L/CNG station, one hydrogen station and seven electric chargers will be built. The project will support a total of eight projects and include more than 30 municipalities and companies.
Having the money and know-how for such projects is only half of the battle, Grannis says. The rest of the challenge lies in education and advocacy.
“We will be putting out more and more projects,” Grannis says. He says he would like to retire — really retire — some day. But not yet.
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