Alternative Fuel Vehicles

Alternative fuels are being used today in place of gasoline and diesel fuel made from petroleum. The U.S. Department of Energy classifies the following fuels as alternative fuels: biodiesel, electricity, ethanol, hydrogen, methanol, natural gas, propane, p-series and solar energy. Colorado Springs Utilities currently uses natural gas vehicles and a hybrid electric vehicle. Using these alternative fuels can help our nation reduce its dependence on imported petroleum and improve air quality.

Natural Gas Vehicles
Exhaust emissions from a typical natural gas vehicle (NGV) are much lower than those from gasoline-powered vehicles. By running more than 90 vehicles on natural gas, Colorado Springs Utilities reduces our yearly carbon monoxide emissions by 75 tons and nitrogen oxides by 2,772 pounds. Over the past 10 years, Colorado Springs Utilities has prevented more than 750 tons of carbon monoxide from being introduced into the atmosphere.

Hybrid Electric Vehicle
Colorado Springs Utilities recently purchased our first hybrid electric vehicle or HEV. A hybrid vehicle is any vehicle that uses two or more sources of power. In the case of a HEV, the two sources of power are electricity from batteries and mechanical from a small combustion engine. HEVs combine the power of a combustion engine with outstanding fuel economy (more than 50 miles per gallon in city driving). The HEV purchased by Colorado Springs Utilities features a 1.5 L, 16-valve, 4-cylinder engine, an electric motor and a 274-volt nickel-hydride battery (with 150,000-mile battery life). It also is unique in that the regenerative braking technology allows the electric motor to recover energy from the brakes when the vehicle is slowing down or stopping and uses that energy to recharge the battery. Thus, the engine never needs to be plugged in for recharging. This regenerative braking, coupled with the fact that the combustion engine is off when the vehicle is running on electricity, contributes to the fuel efficiency of the vehicle, and the greatly reduced tailpipe emissions.

Colorado Springs Utilities is a proud member of the Clean Cities Coalition. Clean Cities advocates the use of alternative fuel vehicles to reduce our dependence on foreign oil and reduce air pollution.