Hillsborough Schools testing buses fueled by propane

Share
April Griffin. WMNF
Hillsborough School Board member April Griffin. By Seán Kinane / WMNF News. 18 July 2012.

The Hillsborough County public school district is updating an aging school bus fleet by purchasing new vehicles; and part of that push is testing buses that run on an alternative fuel: propane. Recently WMNF News spoke about this with School Board Member April Griffin.

“We’re going to be looking at multiple manufacturers of buses. We’re also looking at doing a pilot for propane to see if that’s something we want to do something in the future moving forward. The propane buses burn much cleaner so it’s much better for the environment. So we’re going to be running a pilot program with propane buses. But there’s going to be a recommendation [to purchase] 200 buses coming forward. And then what we’re going to do is we’re going to create some very similar routes with the same number of students, the same types of stops, the same types of roads and do a cost analysis with the fuel efficiency with all of the buses and all of the manufacturers. And are we really going to recognize some savings with the propane or is one manufacturer better than another in that regard?”

Is that a source where you would have to go to a gas station where [you would purchase] propane or do you buy the tanks, how does that work?

“The way we’re going to have to do it in the beginning is that there are mobile trucks that will meet our buses to fuel them.”

Griffin says in the time since this interview the school district has purchased those buses.

You may also like

‘Everything is on the line’: Tampa voters speak out on election day

It’s Election Day, and voters in Tampa are making sure...

Political reporter William March
Billionaire donors pour money into DeSantis-led campaign targeting Andrew Warren

A dormant political action committee recently received $2.5 million from...

2024 election candidate signs
Election Day conversation with Hillsborough’s Supervisor of Elections

Election Day 2024 in Florida. Hillsborough SoE Craig Latimer plus...

Election Day 2024: Live updates & results

Live election coverage with local newscasts every 20 minutes, real-time...

Ways to listen

WMNF is listener-supported. That means we don't advertise like a commercial station, and we're not part of a university.

Ways to support

WMNF volunteers have fun providing a variety of needed services to keep your community radio station alive and kickin'.

Follow us on Instagram

Freak Show
Player position: