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Propane Fleet Experiences


UPS Adds 306 Alternative Fuel Vehicles to Fleet

Last Updated: November 13, 2007
UPS placed an order for 167 CNG delivery trucks and took delivery of 139 new propane delivery trucks for its North American delivery service. In addition, the company has launched an initiative to use biodiesel fuel in its ground support vehicles at its air hub in Louisville, Ky.UPS's worldwide AFV fleet includes 1,629 vehicles, the largest such private fleet in the transportation industry. The fleet includes CNG, LNG, propane, electric, and hybrid electric vehicles. UPS already operates 800 CNG delivery trucks in the U.S. and plans to locate the new CNG vehicles in Dallas; Atlanta; Los Angeles; Ontario, Calif.; San Ramon, Calif.; and Fresno, Calif. The propane vehicles will join the nearly 600 propane trucks already operating in Canada and Mexico. "While there's a great deal of interest in the research we're doing with new types of hybrids, 70 years of testing alternative fuel vehicles has taught us there are multiple technologies that can effectively reduce our dependence on fossil fuels as well as our carbon footprint," said Robert Hall, UPS's director of vehicle engineering. "Adding this many propane and CNG vehicles is going to have a very positive impact."The propane and CNG trucks currently in the UPS fleet were converted from gasoline and diesel vehicles in the 1980s to run on alternative fuels. The new trucks are originally manufactured for alternative fuel use. The chassis for the CNG trucks are being purchased in two sizes from Freightliner Custom Chassis Corporation. The trucks will feature engines from Cummins Westport that are expected to yield a 20% emissions reduction and 10% improvement in fuel economy over the cleanest diesel engines available in the market today.The new propane-powered vehicles were manufactured by Workhorse Custom Chassis and feature the latest technology in clean burning propane engines provided by Baytech Corporation. Propane vehicles emit about one-third fewer reactive organic gases than gasoline fueled vehicles. Nitrogen oxide and carbon monoxide emissions also are 20% and 60% less, respectively, than conventional vehicles.The biodiesel initiative in Louisville is being funded with the support of a $515,000 federal grant that is helping to offset some of the cost of building a fuel infrastructure at the airport. The infrastructure will provide B5, a 5% biodiesel blend, to operate 366 UPS ground support vehicles starting early in 2008.

Propane Powers Portland Public School Buses

Last Updated: October 03, 2007
Porland Public Schools in Portland, Oregon, transports more than 10,000 students each year with buses traveling 3 million miles a year. During the 1980s, high gasoline prices led the district to explore alternative fuels. In 1983, as an experiment, the district converted three conventional buses to propane. Pleased with their performance, the district decided to convert the rest of its bus fleet to propane. Today, 84% of the district-owned fleet and 88% of contractor-owned buses operate on propane.

"Lower fuel costs are the key to successful operation of our propane fleet," says Phil Weber, director of student transportation for Portland Public Schools. "We buy 740,000 gallons of propane per year and that allows us to negotiate a price close to $1.20 per gallon." Ensuring a dependable supply of fuel at a competitive price is critical to the decision to use any alternative fuel. "We've found that there is a five-year payback for the capital costs of the small buses," says Weber. "The price of fuel is what makes that possible." Smaller districts and fleets that have fewer vehicles may be able to piggyback onto a large contract such as Portland's when delivery is in the same area as the larger user.

The propane-powered buses have helped the district reduce exhaust emissions and lower fuel costs. The overall performance of the propane buses is excellent, and the average life span of engines is almost twice as long as that of conventionally fueled buses. "Until recently, we have found it hard to identify conversion companies for gasoline to propane conversions. But now Bluebird has entered the market with a factory built propane-powered bus, and IMPCO has received certificatios for the 6.0 liter GM engine," Weber says.

"Fifty percent of our bus routes are for special needs children, and we use the smaller buses for those routes," Weber says. Each propane-powered small bus has a fuel economy at or just below that of an equivalent petroleum bus. All are fueled on-site from a 2,800-gallon tank truck. An onsite 1,000-gallon stationary tank is the backup fueling source.

For more information about the propane bus fleet of Portland Public Schools, contact Phil Weber at pweber@pps.k12.or.us.

Zion National Park Shuttles Run on Propane

Last Updated: September 21, 2007
Zion National Park in Utah, at the junction of the Colorado Plateau, the Great Basin, and the Mojave Desert, operates 30 propane (LPG) buses that provide transportation along the Zion Canyon scenic drive inside the park and along a route in the neighboring town of Springdale. The park bus route departs the Zion Canyon Visitor Center every few minutes. Approximately 81% of park visitors use the shuttle service during its operating season. According to Kirk Scott, general manager of the Zion Shuttle System, the buses are quieter and emit fewer pollutants into the environment than diesel. At an average 1,076 Btu of energy used per passenger mile, the shuttle buses are also about three times more fuel efficient than passenger cars.

The park purchases high-purity LPG at stable prices from cryogenic storage facilities at a refinery near Salt Lake City. The electronic components that control ignition in the Cummins B5.9 LPG engines seem to work best with at least 95% purity propane fuel and no propylene. Experienced professionals need to install the LPG fueling infrastructure. The park plans to continue using LPG in shuttles and to purchase more LPG buses to replace older buses and expand its fleet.

For more information, visit the Zion National Park Web site or contact Kirk Scott at parkstrans@infowest.com.

Airport Shuttles Go All Natural in Portland, Oregon

Last Updated: September 21, 2007
The Portland International Airport (PDX) in Oregon uses several alternative fuels, including compressed natural gas (CNG); E85 (85% ethanol, 15% gasoline); propane (LPG); B20 biodiesel (20% biodiesel and 80% conventional diesel); and hybrid electric vehicles, in its fleet. PDX began replacing conventional petroleum diesel buses with CNG-fueled buses in 1997 and currently has 26 shuttle buses, three heavy-duty vehicles (HDVs), three off-road vehicles, and 18 light-duty vehicles (LDVs) that are fueled with CNG. PDX also has five off-road vehicles (OHVs) that are fueled with propane (LPG), two flexible-fuel vehicles fueled with E85, and six hybrid LDVs. PDX has fueled its diesel vehicles with B20 since 2002 and currently operates 18 HDVs, 35 OHVs, and three sweeper vehicles on B20.

PDX installed fueling infrastructure to meet all its alternative fuel needs. The airport currently has CNG, LPG, E85, and B20 fueling stations on property, but cannot sell fuel to other fleets or the public because of access limitations. Larry Medearis, aviation senior manager, Maintenance & Facility Services, points to lower emissions, better relations with the environmental community, and longer operational life, which means more miles between rebuilds, as advantages to the alternative fuel fleet. Last year PDX consumed 276,500 gasoline gallon equivalents of CNG to fuel its fleet of 50 CNG vehicles.

PDX is studying the option to start replacing its CNG shuttle buses with new hybrid diesel-electric buses, and plans to continue using its other current AFVs. For more information, visit the PDX Web site.

Seattle Tacoma International Airport

Last Updated: August 22, 2007
In 2001, the Port of Seattle Aviation Division adopted a fleet vehicle purchase policy that required the purchase of alternative fuel vehicles (AFVs), whenever feasible and practical, to replace conventional petroleum vehicles. The Seattle Tacoma (Sea-Tac) International Airport's fleet is currently composed of 60 compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicles, including 16 buses and 41 light-duty vehicles (LDVs)--all of which display the slogan "Doing our share for cleaner air naturally." Sea-Tac's fleet also includes seven propane LDVs, nine hybrid LDVs and 91 ground support units that operate on electricity. In 2005, the Sea-Tac Airport received the Environmental Protection Agency's Clean Air Excellence Award in recognition of the implementation of air quality programs such as the fleet vehicle purchase policy.

The Port required airport taxi and shuttle services to switch to CNG vehicles. Shuttle Express currently has 27 CNG shuttle vans serving the airport. Shuttle Express operates more than 33% of its total trip mileage using the CNG vans. The Seattle-Tacoma International Taxi Association operates all of its 166 taxi cab fleet with CNG-fueled Ford Crown Victorias. The Port of Seattle's Air Quality Web site reports that the CNG fleet is expected to produce 149 fewer tons of carbon monoxide and 24 fewer tons of oxides of nitrogen each year compared to conventional vehicles.

The Port partnered with Clean Energy to install, operate, and maintain a full-service CNG fueling station at Sea-Tac, which is open to the public and operates 24 hours a day. Sea-Tac currently has plans to add an additional public CNG fueling station, as well as increase the number of CNG buses in its fleet.

For more information, contact Russ Simonson, senior environmental program manager, Port of Seattle, Aviation Division, at simonson.r@portseattle.org.