Published: July 01, 2008 06:22 pm         

School board considering propane-powered buses

Propane-driven school buses could be what the Cumberland County Board of Education has been looking for to alleviate the rising costs of fuel.

Concerned with upward trends in fuel prices, the BOE accepted a proposal from Transportation Director Lane McAnally to apply for a grant for the purchase of propane-driven school buses. Robert Safdie, 2nd District representative, pointed out McAnally has been proactive in exploring initiatives to lower the cost of fuel since expenses have risen from $100,000 in 2002 to a tentative budget of $550,000 for the next school year.

Safdie explained the school system has explored the use of other fuel alternatives, such as Pure Vegetable Oil (PVO), and liquid nitrogen in tires to increase mileage efficiency, but was not pleased with the result.

"It's because of his persistence, research and special approach that allows us to determine whether or not it [a propane bus] benefits us as opposed to jumping into something and then learning later on it wasn't the best thing," said Safdie. "This proposal is a result of Lane's work."

According to McAnally, propane is currently being used in larger cities for transit buses and in some school buses in California and Texas. Although it has a lower efficiency rate, propane is currently available at a rate of $2.23 per gallon, which is cheaper than the $4 being spent on a gallon of diesel.

"In one year, the school system would realize a $987.27 savings per bus," he wrote in the proposal. "Over the lifetime of a bus [15 years], this equates to $14,809.85. The savings on the life of a fleet of 85 buses is $1,258,700."

However, there are some major drawbacks with purchasing one of these buses. For instance, each propane-driven bus costs $9,000 more than its diesel counterpart, which costs approximately $75,000. McAnally also pointed out the propane buses only come with two-year warranties, unlike diesel buses that have five-year warranties. Plus, extending the warranties will cost around $3,000 or $9,000 more.

McAnally said he would "love to get one" and see how it compares with the school system's current diesel buses. The grant from the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development would enable the school system to do so by covering half of the incremental cost, nearly $18,000. If the BOE decides to create a pilot program, the school system could become a "representative" showcase for others across the state and become a model for assertively addressing alternative fuel options, noted McAnally.

During its June 26 meeting, the BOE also made a decision to hire a company to produce energy savings projects for the school system. Four companies were considered, including TAC Energy Solutions, Siemens, Johnson Controls and Trane.

"You have been given all the information to look over for some time now and most likely have a good idea, maybe, which of these companies you can support," Chair Shirley Parris said to the board.

She suggested each board member write down his or her top choice to narrow down the list to two companies. Although Siemens did not receive a vote from the board, the other companies did:

•TAC—Brian Houston, 1st District; Victor Randolph, 6th; and Mary Smith, 7th; and Safdie.

•Johnson Controls—Dan Schlafer, 9th; and Orville Hale, 8th.

•Trane—Rick Smith, 4th; Gordon Davis, 5th; and Parris.

Since TAC and Trane had the most votes, the board then had to decide which of the companies would serve the school system best. Five of the board members, Davis, Rick Smith, Schlafer, Hale and Parris, felt Trane was the better choice, while Safdie, Houston, Mary Smith and Randolph sided with TAC.

"Thank you all for your presentations, and we go from here with the Trane people," said Parris.