Choices For Fleets

The National Energy Policy Act, passed in 1992, requires that all companies with fleets of vehicles must purchase vehicles that can use fuels other than gasoline or diesel in increasingly higher percentages beginning with the federal government fleets in 1993. Federal, state and municipal government agencies; fuel providers (such as electricity and natural gas utilities); and private companies all have an obligation to purchase new alternative fuel vehicles (AFVs).

By 2006, 75 percent of new vehicles purchased by the federal government, 75 percent of state vehicles, 90 percent of fuel providers, and 70 percent of municipal government and private fleets are supposed to be AFVs.

When determining what alternative of fuels to use, private vehicle owners and fleet managers should weigh all the factors: economics, available models, rebates, incentives, the ease of refuelling and number of fuelling facilities. They should also consider whether the vehicle they choose is a dedicated or a bi-fuel vehicle, as well as its operating range, trade-in value, and cost of maintenance.

The U.S. Department of Energy's Clean Cities Program has a new Web Site designed to educate fleet managers and policy makers about AFVs. Please go to: www.eere.energy.gov/cleancities/vbg/fleets/

Resources:

HyFleet

Natural Gas Vehicle Coalition
1100 Wilson Blvd. Suite 850
Arlington, VA 22209
703-527-3022
Web: www.ngvc.org

National Alternative Fuels Hotline
P.O. Box 12316
Arlington, VA 22209
800-423-1DOE(1363)
Web: www.eere.energy.gov/afdc/

National Propane Gas Association
1600 Eisenhower Lane, Suite 100
Lisle, Illinois 60532-2167
630-515-0600
Web: www.npga.org

American Methanol Institute
800 Connecticut Avenue, N.W., Suite 620
Washington, DC 20006
202-467-5050
Web: www.methanol.org

American Coalition for Ethanol
P.O. Box 85102
Sioux Falls, SD 57104
605-334-3381
Web: www.ethanol.org