VA, MD to get Alliance propane fueling stations - 08/28/09
Alliance AutoGas founding partners Blossman Gas and American Alternative Fuel will implement the AutoGas Corridor Development Program in partnership with DOE's Virginia Clean Cities and the VA Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy:
Virginia and Maryland are among the states that will receive stimulus funds for propane fueling stations and converting fleets of taxis, town cars and vans from conventional gasoline to propane AutoGas.
The $29 million project will create a southeast AutoGas corridor by converting more than 1,000 vehicles to propane AutoGas Hybrids and creating 17 fueling stations along major roadways in the region.
Other participating states include Tennessee, South Carolina, Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana.
The project received $8.6 million in stimulus grant money from the Department of Energy Thursday and the remainder of the costs will be paid by Clean Cities Coalitions in the nine states, Coxsackie, N.Y.-based American Alternative Fuel and Ocean Springs, Miss.-based Blossman Gas Inc.
Arlington, Falls Church and the Dulles airport are three Virginia locations that will host propane stations, which look similar to normal gasoline stations, but don’t have convenience stores.
Local taxicab and transportation companies involved in the project include Gaithersburg-based Regency Cab, Arlington-based Red Top Cab and Kensington-based Barwood Transportation.
Blossman Gas will build the stations and sell the propane while American Alternative Fuels creates the gas-to-propane conversion systems for the vehicles.
The project aims to increase awareness of and interest in propane as an alternative to gasoline. The Virginia Clean Cities Coalition estimates the program will displace almost 16 million gallons of gasoline over the four-year program period.
Though most of the stations will be exclusive to the transportation companies that use them, some of the stations, including the one at Dulles, will be open to the public.
