“Some of our members walk by the buses and breathe the fumes, and that kind of evidence is actually more compelling than air quality monitors,” said Chelsea Kendall, the foundation’s staff attorney. “Especially when you’re talking about environmental harm, it’s compelling to hear people’s real-life experiences.”
Massachusetts’ idling law prohibits motorists from leaving their engines running for more than five minutes without moving. Violators are subject to a $100 fine, with a $500 fine for repeated violations. Provisions in the Clean Air Act allow groups such as citizens and foundations to file federal lawsuits against organizations they believe have repeatedly violated the law.
A Greyhound spokesman said the company does not comment on litigation matters.
A civil lawsuit filed by the Environmental Protection Law Foundation alleges more than 60 instances of Greyhound buses idling for “extended periods” at the South Station bus terminal. One bus was idled for more than two hours, according to the lawsuit.
“Our goal is to work toward a solution, improve people’s health and work together to make greyhounds compliant again,” said Claire Soria, associate attorney for the foundation.
Thirty-one states have various anti-idling laws or exemptions, according to laws compiled by the American Transportation Institute.
This is the ninth lawsuit the Conservation Law Foundation has filed against transportation companies since 2019 for persistent violations of anti-idling laws in Connecticut and Massachusetts.
Soria said inhaling diesel exhaust from unnecessary idling is something people experience all the time but don’t often call it out by its name.
“With our idling campaign, the more we spread the word that this behavior is completely unnecessary, the more people will become aware of it,” Soria said.
Earlier this month, the Environmental Law Foundation reached a $1.4 million settlement with school bus company Durham School Services Inc. over Clean Air Act violations in Holyoke and Worcester. Durham will spend $1 million to transition to electric vehicles and pay about $300,000 to community groups in both cities that promote electrification and help fund urban green spaces.
This latest lawsuit comes amid a broader recent effort to address air pollution in urban and environmental justice communities across Boston through regulation. According to a report from the state Department of Community Health and Prevention, one in 11 people in Massachusetts, or about 10 percent of adults and 13 percent of children, suffer from asthma.
Soria and Kendall said the goal of the foundation’s anti-idling campaign is to have constructive discussions with companies and use that knowledge to reduce air pollutants.
Greyhound was a defendant in a similar idling lawsuit filed by then-D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine in 2020. The transit company settled for $125,000. The settlement required Greyhound to hire a supervisor to monitor idling at D.C.’s Union Station.
After the settlement was reached, company spokeswoman Crystal Booker said in a 2020 statement that Greyhound was “pleased to have reached a resolution and is committed to complying with the District’s environmental regulations.”
Contact Izzy Bryars at izzy.bryars@globe.com Follow Follow.
