As urban populations continue to expand, the demands on public transit systems in densely populated regions like New York City are escalating. Multiple cities face the dual challenge of increasing ridership and the imperative to minimize their environmental footprints.According to Law 97 in NYC, the goal is to reduce emissions by 40% and to reach net zero by 2050. An innovative solution will need to be integrated into the NYC environment, such as the subway system, where there are a potential unuse space, building rooftop, since we know that spaces in New York City are very critical, such as these proposals that will incorporate solar panels under railroads, solar panels alongside tracks, and vertical axis wind turbines (VAWTs) alongside the tracks. This will reduce, at a certain point, the dependence on Con Edison for high energy demand and show a commitment to sustainability and environmental stewardship.This thesis explores the technical feasibility and economic impacts of integratingrenewable energy into the NYC subway system; The focus will be on solar panels and vertical axis wind turbines (VAWTs). This integration can contribute to the sustainability of the grid and make the best use of the space in the subway, where space is the goal in NYC, with vast unused spaces in the subway infrastructure, which can be transformed for renewable energy. Accordingto the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), using these spaces can help reach theemissions Net-Zero.
","abstract_html":"<p>As urban populations continue to expand, the demands on public transit systems in densely populated regions like New York City are escalating. Multiple cities face the dual challenge of increasing ridership and the imperative to minimize their environmental footprints.According to Law 97 in NYC, the goal is to reduce emissions by 40% and to reach net zero by 2050. An innovative solution will need to be integrated into the NYC environment, such as the subway system, where there are a potential unuse space, building rooftop, since we know that spaces in New York City are very critical, such as these proposals that will incorporate solar panels under railroads, solar panels alongside tracks, and vertical axis wind turbines (VAWTs) alongside the tracks. This will reduce, at a certain point, the dependence on Con Edison for high energy demand and show a commitment to sustainability and environmental stewardship.This thesis explores the technical feasibility and economic impacts of integratingrenewable energy into the NYC subway system; The focus will be on solar panels and vertical axis wind turbines (VAWTs). This integration can contribute to the sustainability of the grid and make the best use of the space in the subway, where space is the goal in NYC, with vast unused spaces in the subway infrastructure, which can be transformed for renewable energy. Accordingto the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), using these spaces can help reach theemissions Net-Zero.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Saba, Pengdwinde Olivier"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Engineering (M.E.)","degree_level":"Thesis","degree_discipline":"Engineering","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Amhed Mohamed"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2025,"date_issued":"2025-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2025-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:58:13Z","subjects":["Other Electrical and Computer Engineering","Power and Energy"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://academicworks.cuny.edu/cc_etds_theses/1260","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Amhed Mohamed"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Saba, Pengdwinde Olivier"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2025-06-11T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Engineering"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Engineering (M.E.)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Other Electrical and Computer Engineering","Power and Energy"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://academicworks.cuny.edu/cc_etds_theses/1260"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["As urban populations continue to expand, the demands on public transit systems in densely populated regions like New York City are escalating. Multiple cities face the dual challenge of increasing ridership and the imperative to minimize their environmental footprints.According to Law 97 in NYC, the goal is to reduce emissions by 40% and to reach net zero by 2050. An innovative solution will need to be integrated into the NYC environment, such as the subway system, where there are a potential unuse space, building rooftop, since we know that spaces in New York City are very critical, such as these proposals that will incorporate solar panels under railroads, solar panels alongside tracks, and vertical axis wind turbines (VAWTs) alongside the tracks. This will reduce, at a certain point, the dependence on Con Edison for high energy demand and show a commitment to sustainability and environmental stewardship.This thesis explores the technical feasibility and economic impacts of integratingrenewable energy into the NYC subway system; The focus will be on solar panels and vertical axis wind turbines (VAWTs). This integration can contribute to the sustainability of the grid and make the best use of the space in the subway, where space is the goal in NYC, with vast unused spaces in the subway infrastructure, which can be transformed for renewable energy. Accordingto the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), using these spaces can help reach theemissions Net-Zero.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Renewable Energy Integration in NYC Subway: Solar Panels (Under Railroads and at the Subway's Edge) & Vertical Axis Wind Turbines (VAWTs) Near Tracks"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Amhed Mohamed"],"dc:creator":["Saba, Pengdwinde Olivier"],"dc:date.available":["2025-06-11T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["As urban populations continue to expand, the demands on public transit systems in densely populated regions like New York City are escalating. Multiple cities face the dual challenge of increasing ridership and the imperative to minimize their environmental footprints.According to Law 97 in NYC, the goal is to reduce emissions by 40% and to reach net zero by 2050. An innovative solution will need to be integrated into the NYC environment, such as the subway system, where there are a potential unuse space, building rooftop, since we know that spaces in New York City are very critical, such as these proposals that will incorporate solar panels under railroads, solar panels alongside tracks, and vertical axis wind turbines (VAWTs) alongside the tracks. This will reduce, at a certain point, the dependence on Con Edison for high energy demand and show a commitment to sustainability and environmental stewardship.This thesis explores the technical feasibility and economic impacts of integratingrenewable energy into the NYC subway system; The focus will be on solar panels and vertical axis wind turbines (VAWTs). This integration can contribute to the sustainability of the grid and make the best use of the space in the subway, where space is the goal in NYC, with vast unused spaces in the subway infrastructure, which can be transformed for renewable energy. Accordingto the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), using these spaces can help reach theemissions Net-Zero.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://academicworks.cuny.edu/cc_etds_theses/1260"],"dc:subject":["Other Electrical and Computer Engineering","Power and Energy"],"dc:title":["Renewable Energy Integration in NYC Subway: Solar Panels (Under Railroads and at the Subway's Edge) & Vertical Axis Wind Turbines (VAWTs) Near Tracks"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Engineering"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Engineering (M.E.)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:58:13Z"}