Four new propane buses moved park visitors around the grounds of Mammoth
Cave National Park today as part of National Park Week activities. The
Department of Energy (DOE)-Clean Cities/National Park Initiative awarded
$505,000 to Mammoth Cave for the purchase of high-efficiency vehicles –
buses, pickups and an electric vehicle – to replace older models,
acknowledging the park’s consistent green energy efforts.
Mammoth Cave National Park Superintendent Pat Reed (far right) is joined by representatives from Forever Resorts of Scottsdale, AZ; National Renewal Energy Labs, Golden Colorado; the Kentucky Clean Fuels Coalition; and the Kentucky Office of Adventure Travel to launch the new all-alternative fuel fleet at Mammoth Cave National Park. (Photo: Business Wire)
“The Clean Cities partnership is a great boost to the park and our
staff,” said Park Superintendent Patrick Reed. “We have incorporated
sustainable, green practices into almost every facet of our operation.
These new vehicles aid in our efforts to reduce emissions and lower the
carbon footprint of the park and to show park visitors how, together, we
can make a difference.”
The Clean Cities/National Park Initiative replaces older vehicles with
new, more efficient ones that are less reliant on petroleum based fuels
like gasoline and diesel. Mammoth Cave National Park already had a
strong alternative fuel vehicle fleet, fueled by propane, ethanol,
bio-diesel, and electricity. The partnership with Clean Cities replaced
four aging propane buses (three 1990 models and a 1977 model) with new
ones, and also two gasoline pickup trucks with two propane pickups, and
one gasoline-powered golf cart with a new electric powered GEM (Global
Electric Motorcar) vehicle.
Mammoth Cave was selected as one of the first National Park Service
(NPS) areas to kick off the Initiative because of its good track record
with past Clean Cities alternative fuel projects and its high visibility
impact with park visitors. Forever Resorts, the park concessioner, also
converted its bus fleet to propane.