Jackson Hole Mountain Resort

Written By Alicia Cox

JHMR fleet manager, unboxes their new Level 2 charging station. Steve applied for an received two Level 2 charging stations through our Level 2 Charging Station rebate program.

Jackson Hole Mountain Resort (JHMR) has a long history of using alternative fuels to reduce emissions within their fleet operations. Over the years they have used veggie oil and biodiesel and explored the potential for compressed natural gas vehicles. In recent years they have settled into a mixture of vehicles and fuels based on the unique operational needs of a large ski area providing services for over a half million skier days annually.

The Opportunity

As a world class ski resort, visited by thousands of tourists, loved by locals, and situated in the pristine Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, JHMR is uniquely situated and beholden to protect the very place that provides such an unparalled experience. The operations required of a ski resort are vast and there is a myriad of vehicles types needed to maintain operations. This provides an opportunity to deploy a variety of solutions to offset the impact of the footprint of resort operations.

The Solution

JHMR’s long time fleet manager, Steve Parker, has quietly been deploying unique fuela and vehicle solutions for years. These are JHMR’s current solutions in action:

Renewable Diesel

All 19 Snow Cats run on a blend of renewable diesel.

All generators, the stationary equipment to power the ski lifts if there happens to be a power outage, are fueled by a blend renewable diesel (RD).

JHMR procures a blend of 50% RD in the summer months and a blend of 15% in the winter months.

Electric Snowmobiles

  • JHMR owns and operates two electric snowmobiles. These snowmobiles are used every day, moving electricians and maintenance employees from the base to lifts. The snowmobiles are simply plugged in to a normal 110 outlet and do not even need to be plugged in each night to have a suffient electric range for the obligations of each day.

Electric Vehicles

  • JHMR owns and operates a plug-in hybrid Jeep Wrangler, plug-in hybrid Jeep Cherokee and a Ford Lightning (all-electric F-150)

Charging Infrastructure

  • Jackson Hole Mountain Resort has three Level 2 Charging stations to charge JHMR’s electric vehicles and to offer electric vehicle charging for employees. (Teton Village Association (TVA) manages the parking lots in Teton Village and offers public charging stations, more on TVA soon)

Fuel Efficiency

  • JHMR uses a fuel additive, Oxon. This fuel additive is used to improve fuel combustion resulting in improved engine efficiency and a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. JHMR’s use of Oxon in their fuel has resulted in an improved fuel efficiency of 2.5%.

Employee and Season Pass Holder START Bus Season Passes

  • JHMR provides START bus winter season passes to all employees and season pass holders. This allows for employees to take transit to the village for each shift for employees or each visit to the ski hill for pass holders. From the town of Jackson this is about a 16 miles, round trip.

The Impact

The combined impact of JHMR’s alternative fuel and vehicle activities result in a reduction 580 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions.* This is equivalent to taking 126 vehicles off the road for an entire year.

*the START bus passes are excluded from this amount as the GHG emisisons from this activity is lumped into the broader stats and impact of START as a whole system.

Beyond the measureable quantity of JHMR's reduced greenhouse gas emissions due to their operational improvements, JHMR’s actions have exponential positive ripple effects.

  1. An empoyee with access to workplace charging, which JHMR offers, is 3 to 6 times more likely to buy an electric vehicle.

  2. Employees have the opportunity to drive a JHMR’s electric vehicle and 25% of people who have ridden in an EV are "very likely" to consider purchasing one, compared to only 12% of those with no experience.

  3. Steve has presented on numerous YTCC panels and is a regular attendee at our monthly Renewable Diesel Working Group meetings. He readily shares his expertise using renewable diesel and has helped other ski resorts and fleets smoothly transition to renewable diesel by sharing his experience.

What’s Next?

Steve mentioned they would like to add more electric snowmobiles to their fleet and will look into electric powered snowcats for base area and pathway grooming.

Jackson Hole Mountain Resort

Alicia Cox
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