Electric vans promote sustainability initiative

It's electric!  

Want to go green and keep the environment safe?

Then ride one of the "Green Machines."

The Green Machines are the energy-efficient vans that arrived on campus in September.

"We purchased the vans in July for $20,950 each, and the money came from state funds," said Police Chief Patricia Norris.   

"The green vans do not require a license tag which saves money in the long run," Norris said.  

"It was a joint decision between all of us in the police department to get the vans," said Eric Cabbell, supervisor of communications and student patrol.

The vans' batteries take about 20 hours to charge fully.  

The vans can run for an hour and a half without being charged.

"These vans are just like flashlights," Cabbell said.

"When the students are not using the vans, we must keep them plugged in," Cabbell said.

The vans were brought to WSSU for the student patrol to transport students throughout the campus from 6 p.m. until midnight Sundays through Thursdays.

The vans are restricted for traveling on campus only and can take students to places that the shuttle vans cannot.

"Our shuttle vans are not for dorm-to-dorm drop-off, but for commuting students," Norris said.

The eight-member student patrol take turns in pairs to transport students; one drives and one rides along.  

"The second student rides along for safety precautions," said Dominique Brantley, a member of the student patrol.  

Brantley is a senior justice studies major from Newark.

Student patrols [drivers] are required to major in justice studies or political science.  The student patrol has other duties.  

"There are three things that we have to do as a student patrol: dispatch, foot patrol [in pairs] and drive the vans," Brantley said.    

Norris said these experiences give the student [majors] practical experience in security work.   

These vans were more of a test trial overall," Cabbell said.  

"I think that the vans are a good idea." Cabbell said.

 "But there have been some negative feedback from students," Cabbell said.

"The students say that the speed of the vans are too slow," Cabbell said.

Brantley said they are very difficult to drive [the vans] because they don't have power steering.

"I am used to driving cars with an automatic transmission.

The vans have three positions: forward, reverse, and neutral.

The craziest thing about the vans is that there is an emergency switch that can be easily triggered and or stop the van in the middle of the street."

WSSU is the first HBCU in the UNC system to purchase the electric vans and will not be getting anymore energy-efficient vans for the time being.