I am currently working on the primary field office for the Eagle Ford field in Texas. This facility will be the headquarters for all activities within this field plus will serve as an operation center for offshore and Houston Operations if Houston has to be evacuated because of a hurricane. This facility will be located 1 1/2 hours southeast of San Antonio, Texas, just outside of a very small town without any public transportation whatsoever.
The Main headquarters for this company is located in Houston approximately 3 hour drive from the project site. Once this facility is up and running there will be a steady flow of employees and others traveling from Houston to the site and back each week. To facilitate the transport of these employees, contractors and visitors to the site a bus transit system will be established to this site, similar to those at the other owners facilities. It is planned to have a 50 passenger bus for this route. It has been estimated that Monday and Friday routes will carry approximately 30 or more passengers. This bus will travel between the site each and every day moving people, mail and supplies.
So my question, this Owner owned bus system will transport many employees, customers, contractors and visitors between these sites each day thus reducing the number of cars traveling back and forth this 3 hour drive, reducing emissions, fuel consumption, and improved safety for these individuals. Can this option be used as an alternative solution for the SSc4.1 - Alternative Transportation and is there anything I need to be aware of applying for this credit? Any and all help would be appreciated. Thanks
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David Posada
Integrated Design & LEED SpecialistSERA Architects
LEEDuser Expert
1980 thumbs up
August 14, 2013 - 2:47 pm
Randy,
For a special circumstance like this, you'll probably need to get a CIR to know for certain if you'll earn the credit, and given the number of points at stake that could be worth it. It’s been said “not all credits may apply to all projects,” but it sounds like there is a substantial effort to reduce single occupant vehicle use. The more you can do to quantify that and account for different users the better your chance of getting this approved.
Some issues to consider:
Will all users of the site be coming from Houston and have the option to use the buses? What percent of users are expected to come via bus? Does the bus service coincide with all work shifts or are some workers not going to be able to use the bus because of schedules? Who will be visitors to the site? How secure is access to the site, and what is the process for getting permission to enter? Are there contractors, maintenance staff, or service providers not coming from Houston who won’t have access to the buses? Are those people driving service vehicles/ equipment to the site and couldn’t use transit if it was available?
You could start by submitting a technical question via email to the GBCI customer service: www.gbci.org > Help > Email Us > About Project Registration and Certification. That’s also where you can submit a CIR when you are ready.
Hope that helps - post back here with any other questions.
Adrienn Gelesz
LEED APABUD Engineering Ltd.
48 thumbs up
March 4, 2014 - 5:50 am
Hello Randy,
did you eventually have any feedback on whether your solution is acceptable? Many thanks,
Adrienn