The Railroad Commission was awarded $12.6 million, with a match of $37.7 million from the grant participants, for the purchase of propane school buses and light- and medium-duty propane trucks, vans and cars from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding through the U.S. Department of Energy’s Clean Cities grant program. The total project is $50.4 million.
The project will deploy about 800 propane vehicles, including propane school buses, medium-duty propane trucks and vans, and propane-fueled light-duty vehicles for about 40 Texas school districts and public agencies. To support the vehicles, 35 propane refueling stations will be built or upgraded. The vehicles will reduce petroleum consumption, increase alternative-fuel use, and enhance air quality. The fueling stations will allow the fleets to lower their costs by buying fuel in bulk, access federal motor fuel excise tax credits, refuel at the times most convenient to their schedules, and model successful use of propane to nearby peers.
