Gov. Beshear: TARC Unveils First 15 Cleaner Emission Buses Serving Louisville Residents

While serving as attorney general, Gov. Beshear secured $100 million settlement from Volkswagen; part of settlement designated for sustainable public transportation

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (July 1, 2021) – On Thursday, Gov. Andy Beshear joined Transportation Secretary Jim Gray and Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer as the Transit Authority of River City (TARC) unveiled the first 15 of 47 new, cleaner emission buses with those buses leaving Union Station for the first time to begin serving Louisville residents.

Senate Minority Leader Morgan McGarvey, Sen.

Gerald Neal, Rep. Ken Upchurch, Rep. Josie Raymond and Metro Councilman Markus Winkler also took part in the ribbon cutting ceremony for the new buses.

In October, Gov. Beshear and other state leaders announced $8.5 million in transportation funding to replace about 170 buses – including at least 45 buses from TARC’s fleet – and support other efforts to expand reliable and sustainable transportation in Kentucky. The awards focused on purchasing cleaner emission transit buses in areas of Kentucky challenged with meeting federal air quality standards.

The funds were part of the $20.3 million awarded to Kentucky under the Volkswagen Environmental Mitigation Trust. That was part of $100 million secured by then-Attorney General Beshear after filing suit against the automaker for deceiving Kentucky consumers. The 2020 General Assembly developed a spending plan for the funds and approved expenditures beginning July 1, 2020. To learn more about the funding announcement, see the full October release.

“While I was attorney general, we held Volkswagen accountable for deceiving Kentucky consumers, and today we’re seeing funds from that settlement improving public transit and air quality in Louisville,” said Gov. Beshear. “I look forward to the time when we have all 47 new cleaner emission buses in Louisville and 170 across the state, because with investments like these, we are making public transportation healthier and more accessible for our people.”

“Transportation plays a role in our environment and its effects on public health,” added Secretary Gray. “That’s one reason these new, clean-diesel buses are such a great public benefit. Anything we can do to reduce emissions makes for cleaner air and a better Kentucky.”

To learn more about the first 15 cleaner emission buses purchased by TARC and to read comments on the project from Senate President Robert Stivers; Speaker of the House David Osborne; Mayor Fischer; and TARC Executive Director Carrie Butler, see the agency’s full release.