Is it feasible, not to mention necessary, to operate buses on alternative fuels?
The U.S. General Accounting Office reported in 2000 that the high cost of purchase, operation and maintenance of alternative-fueled public transit buses is greater than the marginal improvements in air quality from alternative fuels. The report said CNG buses cost 15-25 percent more than diesel buses, not including the high maintenance and fuel costs. This matters little, however, as the EPA set stringent emission rules in December 2002 that will require a 97 percent decrease, from 500 parts per million to 15 ppm, in the sulfur content of diesel fuel for trucks and buses by 2007. Because of the heavy financial burden of this mandate, a bill before Congress would authorize a grant program to offset the purchase of alternative-fueled school buses. Both CNG and low sulfur diesel are included. The Department of Education would appropriate $40 million for fiscal year 2002, with per year increases of $10 million thereafter, to provide up to 10-15 percent of the purchase price of an alternati
