Washington D.C Listed as a Top Metro Area to Benefit from Transition to Electric Vehicles

Today the American Lung Association released “The Road to Clean Air” – a new report that outlines the broad benefits of a transition to an electric transportation sector increasingly powered by clean, non-combustion renewable energy over the coming decades. The report finds the Washington D.C. metro area in the top 10 metro areas standing to benefit from a transition to electric cars, buses and trucks by mid-century to both improve air quality and address climate change, and significantly benefit the lives and health of residents.

“The transportation sector is a leading contributor to air pollution and climate change,” said Kevin Stewart, director, environmental health, American Lung Association. “We have the technology to transition to cleaner cars, trucks and buses, and by taking that step we can prepare the Washington, D.C. metro area for the future while also seeing the health and economic benefits forecasted in ‘The Road to Clean Air.’ Especially as the Washington D.C. metro area faces the impacts of climate change such as extreme heat and severe storms, this is a powerful and practical opportunity to take action to improve our economy, our health and our future.”

“The Road to Clean Air” outlines the broad benefits of the transition to an electric transportation sector over the coming decades.
National benefits per year based on emission reductions in 2050:

• avoiding approximately 6,300 premature deaths
• preventing more than 93,000 asthma attacks
• preventing 416,000 lost workdays
• $72 Billion in public health benefits
• $113 Billion in global climate impacts avoided

Benefits in Washington, D.C. metro area per year based on emission reductions in 2050:

• avoiding approximately 175 premature deaths
• preventing more than 2,739 asthma attacks
• preventing 12,674 lost workdays per year
• $2,007,786,421 in public health benefits

Climate change threatens the health of all Americans, from wildfires and extreme storms to worsening air pollution. And poor air quality caused by transportation pollution contributes to a wide range of negative health impacts, including childhood asthma attacks, impaired lung function and development, lung cancer, heart attacks and strokes and premature deaths. As shown in the Lung Association’s annual “State of the Air” report, nearly half of all Americans are living with unhealthy air quality, and low-income communities and communities of color are disproportionately impacted by bad air quality. Many parts of the Washington, D.C. metro area received failing grades for ozone smog in the “State of the Air” report.

Achieving these major benefits to our health and our climate will require dedicated and sustained leadership and investment at all levels of government and will require public education and engagement to ensure the transition to electric vehicles provides clean air for all. The Lung Association is encouraging all Washington, D.C. residents to sign a petition urging support for the critical transition to electric vehicles across the United States.

For more information about “The Road to Clean Air” report visit Lung.org/ev. Journalists seeking to speak with a policy or medical expert about the benefits of a transition to electric vehicles and the health impacts of air pollution or climate change may contact Val Gleason at Val.Gleason@Lung.org or 717-971-1123 or cell 302-275-2277.