​From Sea to Shining Sea Finish Line in Washington DC

​On Friday, June 16th, 2016, the Grand Finale of the #NGVARoadRally took place at Freedom Plaza, in Washington DC.  The main goals of this event were to showcase the benefits of using natural gas and to conclude the 4,825-mile journey from California to the District of Columbia of natural gas fueled vehicles.

CNG trucks, cars and buses traveled from California to Washington DC to raise awareness on the economic and environmental benefits of using natural gas in fleets.  At Freedom Plaza, the vehicles were displayed along Pennsylvania Avenue to raise visibility CNG in transportation, and speakers including manager of the National Clean Fleets Partnership program Mark Smith, Kathryn Clay with NGV America, Melissa Adams with Washington Gas and Ashley Duplechien with Trillium CNG noted the different ways in which they have benefited from using natural gas as a motor fuel.

“Not too many years ago, we could stand behind a city bus on this corner and be asphyxiated,” said GWRCCC Director, Ira Dorfman.  In recent years, however, natural gas vehicles have been growing with the advocacy of transit agencies and elected officials, as CNG have helped clean up the air in the region and helped reduce costs of fuel.

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​At the regional level, the District of Columbia and surrounding jurisdictions have already made natural gas vehicles an essential part of their fleet.  461 WMATA buses, all 62 Arlington Transit’s buses, 102 Ride-On buses and 122 refuse trucks in Montgomery County, 169 street sweepers, refuse trucks, dump trucks and cars from the District of Columbia government and 221 trucks and cars from Washington Gas operate with natural gas fuel. Together, they saved millions of dollars each year in fuel and operating costs.

​GWRCCC would like to thank the event’s sponsors, the District of Columbia Government Department of Public Works, NGV America, Washington Gas, Trillium CNG, the American Gas Association and the American Public Gas Association for their support to make this event a great success. We’d also like to congratulate Director Christopher Shorter, who have been a leader in DC clean fleets for the past years for his leadership award that was presented to him during the event. His dedication to helping the District’s with safe and clean streets and roads is nothing but notable and encouraging.