Alternative Fuel Vehicle Program

The City of Raleigh has been actively encouraging and accelerating the use of alternative fuel vehicles within the City by creating partnerships to develop a market and supporting infrastructure for alternative fuel vehicles.

Alternative fuel vehicles help reduce automobile emissions, promote domestic energy production, improve air quality, and help decrease fuel costs. The City of Raleigh has used alternative fuel vehicles in its fleet of automobiles since 2002. Currently, the City has approximately 320 alternative fuel vehicles among its fleet using fuels that include propane, compressed natural gas (CNG), electric, and biofuels (B5, B20, E85).

In August 2011, the City up-fitted ten police cars with duel fuels, utilizing both gasoline and propane. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, propane can provide lower maintenance costs, higher octane rating, and produces lower amounts of emissions while increase the U.S energy security.

Additional alternative fuel vehicles include:
Compressed Natural Gas (CNG)
Electric Vehicles
Biofuels

The majority of these are flex fuel vehicles that use both regular unleaded fuels and alternative fuels, such as ethanol (E85 blend). The City also has automobiles that are powered by compressed natural gas (CNG) or electricity. In the 2010 fiscal year, the City acquired 16 hybrid compact sedans and sport utility vehicles (SUVs), bringing the City's total number of hybrid vehicles to 32. Additionally, the City has been operating at least 75 percent of its diesel fleet -- or 186 trash collection trucks, recycling trucks and street dump trucks -- on biodiesel fuel (B20) since January 2002. B20 is a domestically produced renewable fuel derived from vegetable oil that significantly reduces harmful elements of diesel exhaust, such as carbon monoxide.

Compressed Natural Gas

The City also received Mobile Source Emissions Reduction Grants, administered by the Division of Air Quality of the North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR). The City used these grants to purchase alternative fuel vehicles and construct a CNG pumping station.

Emissions reductions associated with the use of CNG vehicles vary, but range from 50 to 90 percent in hydrocarbons, 30 to 60 percent in nitrogen oxides, and 85 to 90 percent in carbon monoxide. Biodiesel fuel reduces emissions by 24 percent.

The use of CNG vehicles also reduces the formation of carbon dioxide, a major contributor to global warming, by 30 to 40 percent. Another advantage is that the cost of CNG is significantly less than the price of gasoline, meaning CNG-powered vehicles have lower operating costs than conventional vehicles.

Electric Vehicles

The City of Raleigh has been preparing for electric vehicles in both the City fleet and those in use by the citizens. Raleigh is one of three pioneering cities for Project Get Ready. Project Get Ready is an initiative that helps prepare participating cities for the rollout of plug-in electric vehicles, including installing the necessary electric plug-in infrastructure.

Electric vehicles are also cleaner, quieter, and a more efficient alternative to conventional vehicles.

Biofuels

The City received a grant from the North Carolina Solar Center to purchase a 1,000-gallon mobile fuel tanker to dispense the E85 blend of ethanol in 2009. The grant covers 80 percent of the tanker's purchase price. The City plans to acquire a second tanker when funding becomes available.

The City of Raleigh is also taking steps to acquire more fuel-efficient vehicles to save energy and reduce emissions. Vehicle purchases are being re-evaluated by City departments to determine if smaller or less-equipped vehicles can perform adequately without higher maintenance costs. This has resulted in significant purchase price and fuel savings. The City continues to explore resources that will enable it to support existing alternative fuel programs and initiatives, and develop new projects.