January 9, 2020 (BOSTON, MA) – Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) has sued the Encore casino and its shuttle operators for Clean Air Act violations after observing the shuttles frequently violating tailpipe pollution laws. In addition to Encore and its shuttle contractors Academy Express, DPV Transportation, and Boston Charter Bus, CLF has also sued Paul Revere Transportation for similar violations.
“Idling vehicles choke neighborhoods with harmful air pollution,” said Heather Govern, Director of CLF’s Clean Air and Water program. “Anti-idling laws are specifically meant to curb this dangerous exhaust. When companies ignore these laws, it threatens our health and worsens the climate crisis.”
CLF found these companies’ vehicles frequently violating the Massachusetts anti-idling law that limits unnecessary engine idling to five minutes. Idling exhaust can cause lung damage, aggravate conditions like asthma and bronchitis, and has been linked to increased incidence of heart disease, multiple kinds of cancer, and premature death. Children are particularly susceptible to these harms.
Encore owner Wynn Resorts and the resort’s shuttle operators—Academy Express, DPV Transportation, and Boston Charter Bus – provide buses for resort customers and employees, connecting the Everett resort with locations in Medford, Malden, Chinatown, Chelsea, and elsewhere. CLF observed their vehicles frequently idling for prolonged periods in densely populated residential areas, including locations near schools.
CLF has also found similar violations by the Paul Revere company, which operates a variety of shuttle buses in the Boston area. These buses have been observed idling extensively in Roxbury both at their lot on Reading St. and at the Ruggles MBTA station. Paul Revere is a repeat offender of these laws. It has twice paid federal penalties for violating Massachusetts’ regulations in 2002 and 2009.
You can find the Encore complaint here, the Academy Express complaint here and the Paul Revere complaint here.
CLF experts are available for further comment.
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