Natural-Gas-Powered Buses Usher New Era For Kansas City Transit

On July 10, the Kansas City, MO Area Transportation Authority put two new natural-gas powered buses into service and announced plans to eventually replace its entire fleet of 300 buses, which mostly use diesel, with natural-gas vehicles.

An additional 23 natural-gas buses have already been ordered and the entire fleet will be replaced over 12 to 14 years as the current buses wear out. Five hybrid-electric buses now in use will also be replaced.

The natural-gas buses are cleaner burning than those that use other fossil fuels. Compared with a model year 2000 diesel bus, they emit 80 percent less nitrous oxide, and 99 percent less particulate matter, which consists of tiny bits of suspended solids.

The buses will also be more economical. The price of natural gas purchased by the ATA is about half the cost of diesel. Even if natural-gas prices rise in the future, the fuel is still expected to remain cheaper than diesel. A natural-gas bus costs $40,000 more than a diesel-powered bus, but it is expected to save the ATA about $100,000 over its life.

About 20 percent of transit buses in the United States use natural gas, and according to the American Public Transit Association they are the largest user of natural gas by vehicles.

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