LA CROSSE, Wis. (WXOW) — The La Crosse Wastewater Utility now has three electric vehicles in its fleet after starting to purchase them in 2023.

Wastewater Superintendent Jared Greeno said the department is saving money while fulfilling the City’s Climate Action Plan, which the Common Council adopted in Jan. 2023. The savings positively impact the department’s budget and rate payers.

The department’s first electric vehicle was a utility golf cart used for collecting samples throughout the treatment plant, transporting supplies and completing other tasks. Staff found the cart so useful that the department purchased a second cart in 2025, along with a van.

“When it was time to replace our electrician’s van, we did not want another gas guzzler,” Greeno said. “We decided to get an electric van because of the overwhelming success of the electric utility carts.”

The van is used for maintaining the treatment plant, 27 sanitary lift stations and seven storm lift stations. Staff also use it when attending training events within and outside of La Crosse.

Greeno said that with the lower costs of electric vehicles today, he hopes to purchase more in the future. The City of La Crosse uses four hybrid Municipal Transit Utility buses and a fleet of almost two dozen hybrid vehicles spread across various departments.