STN EXPO Co-Chair Ralph Knight, the director of transportation at Napa Unified School District in Northern California, led the discussion. Knight is an award-winning fleet manager for his early adoption of alternative fuels. California has mandated that school districts, as well as other fleets, only purchase new vehicles that are powered by alternative energy, and Napa Valley has been a leader in embracing a wide range of options from CNG to propane to electric to hybrids.
That was evident by the information Knight shared on his experiences over the past two decades as well as similar data on maintenance savings from the Los Angeles Unified School District and Houston Independent School District.
Mark Swackhamer, the senior fleet operations manager at Houston ISD, discussed his experience with propane as well as B5 biodiesel for use with the district’s ultra-low- sulfur diesel school buses. Swackhamer said the propane buses are getting between 4.5 and 5 mpg but are saving considerable money in the shop. He explained that preventive maintenance costs about $35 per bus compared to $95 for diesel at the same 6,000-mile interval, mainly due to propane requiring less oil and, as a result, fewer oil filter changes as well as fuel filters.
All told, Swackhamer said propane is saving the district $3,000 per bus per year in fuel and maintenance costs. Propane also costs half the price of diesel while providing more power.
“Propane is absolutely the best way to go,” for Houston, he added.
He forecasts that propane-powered engines will last a similar 250,000-mile life as diesel engines and a “worst-case scenario” that Houston will break even on propane. The district mainly relies on taxpayer money to buy and operate the propane buses.
He noted his one regret is that he wishes he would have installed two 18,000-gallon propane tanks at the district’s maintenance facility to keep a larger supply on hand between deliveries. Read more here.
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