FleetOwner Executive Editor David Cullen (second from left) presents FleetOwner’s 2008 Vocational Fleet of the Year award to New York City Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe as Assistant Commissioner Keith Kerman (left) and District Manager Mark Wood, representing award program co-sponsor ArvinMeritor, look on.
The award ceremony marked the kickoff yesterday of the 21st annual Vehicle & Equipment Show staged by the New York City Parks & Recreation Dept. (NYC Parks) in Flushing Meadows Corona Park in Queens, at the site of both the 1939-40 and 1964-65 New York World’s Fairs. NYC Parks was honored with the award, conferred by FleetOwner’s editorial staff, for the agency’s innovative, forward-thinking approach to fleet management that includes leading by both example and outreach to other public and private truck fleets.
“More than half the Parks Department 2,300 vehicles use alternative energy from solar, to biodiesel, to hybrid to electric,” remarked Commissioner Benepe. “As the nation’s ‘greenest’ municipal fleet, we’re serious about minimizing our impact on the environment. We have recently added 100 bicycles for supervisors and managers to reduce car use, ordered smaller vehicles where possible, installed the third-largest green roof in New York City at our automotive repair shop ,and made recycling more available at our major events and facilities.”
