First Transit agrees to cut down on bus idling, settles lawsuit with conservation group for $735,000

Source: Journal Inquirer

NEW HAVEN, CONN. — A bus company that operates in Connecticut, whose vehicles apparently spent too much time idling, has settled a lawsuit with a conservation group that has said that practice harms the environment extensively and unnecessarily.

First Transit Inc. and the Conservation Law Foundation have entered into a consent decree over a lawsuit the foundation filed in 2022 for more than $700,000.

The Massachusetts-based foundation filed suit in 2022, alleging that a three-year investigation revealed that the company had violated anti-idling laws and that its buses could be seen idling for more than 30 minutes. According to the suit, the company violated the Clean Air Act and the Connecticut State Implementation Plan, which prohibits the unnecessary operation of a mobile resource for more than three consecutive minutes when it is not in motion.

According to the foundation's complaint, the violations occurred at the New Haven Go bus stop, the Yale School of Medicine shuttle bus stop, and the Wolcott Hill Park and Ride in Wethersfield, and exposed thousands of people living within a two-mile radius to dangerous air pollution.

"Idling vehicles spread toxic tailpipe pollution into many communities already overburdened with harmful emissions and asthma," said Conservation Law Foundation attorney Erica Kyzmir-McKeon. "Buses are some of the most egregious sources of this pollution, and First Transit will now take the right steps to address the problem. CLF's settlement will promote healthier communities by reducing excessive idling, supporting urban farming and green spaces, and enhancing air monitoring in environmental justice communities."

As part of the settlement, the company has agreed to pay a total of $725,000 to fund air pollution mitigation projects to Gather New Haven and the Connecticut Coalition for Environmental Justice, $10,000 to the U.S. Treasury Department, and pay more than $133,000 in legal costs.

The 65-year-old company, which provides public transportation in more than 40 states, Puerto Rico, and Canada, has also agreed to pay additional fines if it violates anti-idling laws in the future, provide training for current and new employees, and ongoing education on the dangers of idling.

This case is the latest settlement in CLF's campaign against unlawful tailpipe pollution, which "releases harmful exhaust that includes benzene, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen oxides," the organization said in a release. "When inhaled, this exhaust can cause lung damage, aggravate conditions like asthma and bronchitis, and has been linked to increased incidence of heart disease, multiple kinds of cancer, and premature death. Children are particularly susceptible to these harms."

First Transit was sold in 2022 to Transdev, another company that provides public transportation around the country, for $4.6 billion. The acquisition was completed in March.

The company did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

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