This is a story about the Saco Transportation Center, also known as the place where green-energy dreams go to die.

Now before some of you have a stroke, I do believe our climate is changing. I also believe humans have an impact on their environment -- but sometimes it seems we get just a wee bit silly – running around like Chicken Little, screaming that the sky is falling.

You’ll have to forgive me, but I’m just not a big fan of The Emperor’s New Clothes.

While the pursuit of cleaner energy is certainly a noble cause, it seems that we are too often willing to abandon common sense, and instead blindly follow a mantra that is born from fear, rhetoric and half-truths.

And if you have the temerity to question anything about the green agenda, you are immediately branded as a mouth-breathing “denier” with limited cognitive functioning. You better toe the line.

My biggest problem with the “green energy/zero-carbon” agenda is all the self-righteous virtue signaling that goes hand-in-hand with this issue. So often, the paradigm of “Green Energy” is built upon a solid foundation of hypocrisy.

Now, let’s take a closer look at the Saco Transportation Center. When the facility was formally opened in 2009, press releases were sent out. VIPs were in attendance and local, state and even federal politicians were tripping over themselves in order to pat themselves on the back about how “green” the new facility would be --- a virtual “role model for other communities across the country.”

Breathlessly, city leaders in Saco extolled the virtues of the new facility, congratulating themselves for being such good stewards of the environment. The facility was hailed as state-of-the-art, dedicated to be a giant leap forward in the pursuit of a better world, where every boy and girl has a pet unicorn and we all actually enjoy eating kale.

From the press release: “The station is notable for being the first green design train station in the United States, featuring a wind turbine for electricity, geothermal heating and cooling systems, and a roof made from recycled soda bottles.”

But almost as soon as the dust from the grand opening settled, the illusion of green virtue became harder to justify. Saco taxpayers had spent roughly $200,000 for construction of the wind turbine that sat majestically atop the hill of Saco Island.

The magnificent wind turbine, however, did not produce the expected amount of electricity, and it became a “safety concern.” It was quietly removed and taken down a few years later. There was no press release. No senators. No platters of kale and tofu. No pontification from local politicians or environmental lobbyists. The taxpayers took care of the demolition expenses. We can only pray that the turbine was properly recycled.

Undaunted, the politicians, environmental lobbyists and members of the green energy brigade pressed on, and they soon sent out another press release. Oh Happy Day! Biddeford-Saco-OOB Transit (Transit) was going to take ownership of two electric buses. Another ribbon cutting. More speeches. We’re saving the world one bus trip at a time. The local politicians cheered. Abandoned puppies were all adopted and the planet heaved a heavy sigh of relief.

Those new electric busses cost approximately $1.5 million each, nearly three times the cost of a traditional diesel bus.

Don’t worry, the local politicians said. Taxpayers are off the hook . . . the buses were “free,” purchased under a federal grant that was coordinated by U.S. Senator Susan Collins. Ummm, where does federal money come from? Oh yeah, that’s right --- from federal taxes, paid by you and me.

Chad Heid, executive director of Transit, told reporters that his organization will be applying for more federal aid so that additional electric buses can be purchased in the future. Heid added that there will be a charging station in Biddeford, and “on-route charging stations at the Saco Transportation Center will be installed later this year.”

Flash forward a couple years later? Still no bus charging stations at the transportation center. In fact, the company that built the “green” electric busses recently filed for bankruptcy protection, according to the Bangor Daily News.

Apparently, green energy doesn’t work out so well for its investors.

Almost immediately after being purchased, the new electric busses presented several challenges for the local transit authority. The new busses nearly drained their batteries after only a few hours of use on cold, Maine mornings.

A bit of disclosure: I was hired by Transit last year on a short-term contract to help collect data about passenger/route efficiencies. That contract ended last year. Over just a few weeks of riding several of the busses on various routes, I learned a lot about our local bus system and the people who ride the bus. (More about that in a minute).

On one cold February morning, those of us riding on one of the new electric busses had to be rescued by a passenger van, transported back to the transit maintenance facility on Pomerleau Street in Biddeford and then re-loaded onto a traditional diesel bus. The passengers were not happy campers. I tried not to laugh.

Earlier this year, the University of New England began running a series of promotional television commercials including one in which several students praised the school for its “sustainability” practices and its commitment to the environment. Well, laddi-laddi-da.

Local taxpayers (you and me) help provide a shuttle trolley to go back and forth between downtown and UNE’s Biddeford campus, 14 times a day, seven days per week. The students who bloviate about “environmental stewardship and sustainability” apparently don’t like using mass transit, and instead prefer to drive their cars to have brunch at the Run Of The Mill and other downtown taverns.

That particular bus line (The Silver Line) operates for free. Throughout the day, basically every 15 minutes, that bus (trolley) also runs a loop up Main Street in Biddeford; right onto Lincoln Street, past the parking garage; right onto Elm Street and back to Main Street in Saco. Again, it is free to ride that line. How many people do you suppose take advantage of this service?

Over several days of riding that bus trolley, I saw two people use it. Two. Over a six-hour period. Two people. 30 Trips. Two people. Number of people getting on or off at UNE? Zero. Zilch. Nada.

We want to “save the planet” right up until the point when it’s not very convenient to do so. Where I come from, we call that hypocrisy.

Yes, Transit does serve a certain segment of our local population; mainly people without cars.

Meanwhile, the Maine Turnpike Authority recently withdrew its financial subsidy for the ZOOM Turnpike Express bus. They are focusing instead on spending more money to make the highway better able to handle an increasing number of cars.

Remember, the Saco Transportation Center has a roof made of recycled soda bottles. In the lobby, however, you can find vending machines that offer a wide array of beverages in plastic bottles.

What about the train? Sure, the Amtrak Downeaster is a fun way to go catch a Bruins game or see the Celtics, but very few people use it as a commuter line. In fact, according to rail officials, overall ridership on the Downeaster is increasing, but the number of work commuters has dropped by more than 30 percent since 2019.

Really, would you ride the train from Saco to Portland for work? You would be dropped on the western outskirts of the city, on Thompson Point Road. Hardly convenient or efficient.

The municipalities of Biddeford, Saco and Old Orchard each contribute $250,000 annually toward the Transit’s operating costs, and I’m glad that my community offers public transportation.

But it pisses me off that the people who squawk loudest about “sustainability” and carbon emissions rarely – if ever – use public transit. And I think maybe we should be a bit more committed to efficiency rather than patting ourselves on the back for being green. Because, honestly, it’s literally not sustainable.

When it comes to meaningless virtue signaling, the city of Saco is giving Portland a good run for its money, but I guess it’s only an island if you look at it from the water.

Randy Seaver can be contacted at randy@randyseaver.com.