PERC webinar discusses adopting propane autogas

Whaley

In a Propane Education & Research Council (PERC) webinar, “Propane Autogas Can Do That: The Inroads to On-Road,” Steve Whaley, autogas business development director at PERC, asked Scott Underwood, manager of operations and marketing at Altogas, and Eddie Waldrop, director of company assets at Blossman Gas, to share their experiences using propane autogas. Their responses have been edited for brevity and clarity.

Whaley: How did you first get your vehicles adopted to autogas? What was the obstacle?

Underwood: The changeover was my frustration with our crane trucks, the diesels and the downtime. It really made me look into why we aren’t in that market for autogas. The numbers were very shocking when you start looking at the bills. [It’s also frustrating] trying to find a diesel mechanic and waiting a week to get it back on the road. I started doing the analysis and that’s when we made the transition. There’s very little downtime and the savings are quite astounding.

Whaley: How has adopting autogas in your own fleet affected your sales outreach?

Waldrop: Our sales staff is able to drive an autogas vehicle, so they can actually pull up to a potential client and talk about the conversion, raise the hood, show it to them and allow the potential customer to drive the vehicle. It has helped us out tremendously with autogas sales in having our own fleet and own driver driving it.

By the numbers

School buses

• Nearly 20,000 buses run on propane autogas.
• More than 1.2 million students are transported daily by autogas-fueled buses.
• There are 13 states that have more than 500 autogas-fueled buses.

Paratransit vehicles

• There are 5,000 paratransit vehicles using autogas.
• Propane autogas makes up 20 percent of the paratransit vehicle market share.

Bobtails and service trucks

• With the alternative fuel tax credit, bobtails can save an estimated $5,422 annually by switching to autogas.
• With the tax credit, service trucks can save an estimated $2,633 annually.
• Without the tax credit, bobtails can save an estimated $3,320 annually by switching to autogas.
• Without the tax credit, service trucks can save an estimated $1,708 annually.

Source: Propane Education & Research Council

Featured image: LP Gas staff