Greenroads Awarded for Sustainable Transportation Contributions
Greenroads has been chosen as a White House Champion of Change for Transportation Technology Solutions in recognition for its unique rating system designed to certify sustainable roadway and transportation projects.
On Wednesday, the White House and U.S. Department of Transportation hosted a Champions of Change event called “Transportation Technology Solutions for the 21st Century.” Greenroads Executive Director Jeralee Anderson accepted the award along with Champions from across the transportation industry that are providing significant leadership in transportation technology solutions at the local, state or regional level. Champions of Change highlights the stories of people and organizations across the country who are “Building an America to Last” with projects that benefit their communities.
The Greenroads Foundation is the developer of the Greenroads Rating System, a collection of sustainable roadway design and construction best practices that address water, environment, access, community impact, construction practices, and materials. There are 11 project requirements, which must be completed in order for a roadway to be considered a “Greenroad.” There are 47 additional activities that may be voluntarily completed to earn points called “credits,” which are designed to encourage sustainability achievement above and beyond standard practice. After a rigorous review process, the Greenroads Foundation then assigns the roadway project a score, which translates to one of four certification levels: Bronze, Silver, Gold and Evergreen.
Currently, there are over 30 registered projects pursuing certification and 6 completed and certified projects in the world. Several registered projects are slated to finish certification in 2013 located in San Jose, Denver, Houston and San Francisco.
Greenroads provides resources on its website to educate those seeking to learn more about sustainable transportation infrastructure or use the Rating System on their local projects and has a professional credential program with an accreditation exam called the Sustainable Transportation Professional (STP). The foundation also offers webinars to support the Project Rating Program as part of the Education Program and participates actively in technical conferences and industry research internationally, and is currently piloting projects in several countries outside the United States, including Canada, New Zealand, and South Africa.
“As a result of using the Greenroads Rating System, many public agencies have been able to reduce their costs, develop sustainability practices and improve the environmental impacts of their transportation projects”, said Anderson. “For example, the City of San Jose, CA, saved 23 percent of the total cost to its Monterey Road Reconstruction Project. Similarly, the City of Bellingham in Washington State created concrete sidewalks out of 400+ crushed, recycled toilets, and the City of Tacoma, WA, restructured its asset management system to improve the operation and maintenance of its public facilities.”