At Comcast, sustainability is an important focus as we plan and implement ways reduce our impact on the environment across our operations. This includes taking into account our energy and fuel usage, putting solar power to use in our facilities and retrofitting offices with LED lighting and controls, among other initiatives.
We’re also extending that focus to include initiatives that can impact customers and employees. That’s why we’re pleased to announce that we have opened two ChargePoint electric vehicle charging stations in the parking lot of our Harrisburg Call Center at 2801 Valley Road. While these stations, which can serve four vehicles simultaneously, are obviously convenient for employees, they are also open to anyone with a ChargePoint account who may also find convenience in our location at the intersection of Interstates 83 and 81.
These are just the latest in a series of stations that already includes Comcast locations in Connecticut and Massachusetts – with more northeastern U.S. stations to come.
ChargePoint operates the world’s largest network of EV charging facilities. To use one, drivers simply download the app from the site, which allows them to plug in at our Comcast locations or tens of thousands of ChargePoint locations.
Qui Frierson is one employee already using the stations. “The electric car charging stations are smart and they conserve energy,” she said.
Recently, Comcast’s Keystone Region installed solar panels at a Grantsville, MD facility; began or completed retrofitting its call centers in Harrisburg, York, Lebanon and Pittsburgh – among other buildings – with LED fixtures and lights; and implemented single-stream recycling at the aforementioned call centers and most other locations.
As part of our focus to reduce energy usage, we also make it a priority to provide the most innovative services in the home and extend energy efficiency options to our customers.
For example, our X1 customers can say “Go Green” into their voice remote and they will be brought to the settings menu to enable power saving mode. This mode will power down the device when it’s not in use, which helps customers reduce their energy consumption and save money on their utility bills.
Our interest in sustainability has also informed our provision of digital services like the Xfinity My Account app, which can eliminate an unnecessary technician visit, and EcoBill, which lets customers view and pay their bills online — from the My Account app or https://comca.st/2ODznSN. Opting to forgo a paper statement in the mail every month is a free, easy and secure way to be environmentally friendly. Comcast’s EcoBill program conserves more than 84 million sheets of paper and 137 million envelopes on an annual basis.
These efforts are not new to Comcast, which three years ago won the CableFax Award for Social Responsibility for its National Recycling Program, diverting electronic waste generated by field and warehouse operations away from conventional waste streams by recycling taps, splitters and amps as well as fiber optic cable and power cords. The National Recycling Program has diverted more than 39 million pounds away from landfills since 2013.
Comcast began installing performance-tuning software in thousands of our vans in 2016, improving fuel efficiency by at least six percent on average. That means 100 fewer gallons of fuel and the potential to reduce CO2 emissions by nearly one ton per vehicle annually in the communities we serve.
Learn more about Comcast’s commitment to sustainability here.
