UCLA Health and UCLA Transportation are working together to protect the health of patients and the Earth with two new zero-emissions shuttles.

The shuttles serve both patients and staff at the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in Westwood and the UCLA Medical Center, Santa Monica, by providing two services. A regular 30-minute loop between the Santa Monica hospital, UCLA’s Wilshire Center building and Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center supports patient care by transporting staff and faculty, while a second service transports patients and their families staying at local guest houses and hotels to and from the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center and nearby medical offices.

UCLA Transportation lent its expertise to procure the new zero-emission vehicles for UCLA Health, replacing two older compressed natural gas shuttles.

Under the University of California’s Climate Action Plan, as well as UCLA’s own sustainability goals, UCLA Transportation works to cut carbon emissions by switching to alternative-fuel vehicles and technologies. Currently, transportation is on track to run a completely carbon neutral fleet by 2025. Of UCLA’s nearly 1,100 fleet vehicles, 62% are alternatively fueled, including battery-electric, natural gas, flex fuel, biodiesel and plug-in hybrid.

UCLA’s ongoing switch to low- and zero-emission vehicles saves nearly 5,000 gallons of fuel and an estimated 42.5 metric tons of CO2 each year. The university recently earned a Gold rating from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education, in part due to these sustainability efforts made by UCLA Transportation.