SunLine Welcomes 'Hydrogen Road Tour 2008'
Drivers weary of sky-high prices at the gas pump can find inspiration for the future this weekend, as SunLine Transit Agency plays host to Hydrogen Road Tour 2008. The event gets underway this Saturday, August 23, at 7:30 a.m. at SunLine headquarters. A fleet of hydrogen-powered vehicles on a coast-to-coast tour, will be highlighting the viability of clean-burning fuel for commercial use. Sponsored by a public-private partnership of governmental agencies and auto industry leaders, Hydrogen Road Tour 2008 started in Portland, ME on August 11. It will finish in Los Angeles on August 23 after making 33 stops in 18 states.
The decision to include the Coachella Valley in the Tour serves as a nod to SunLine Transit Agency’s leadership role in promoting alternative fueled public transportation. The Agency is widely recognized for a number of innovations, including being the first to convert its fleet of buses to 100% compressed natural gas in 1994. Six years later SunLine became the first public refueling station to offer four alternative types of fuels (CNG, HCNG, Hydrogen and LNG). In addition, it is home to the one of the industry’s most advanced hydrogen reformers, enabling for third party refueling of commercial vehicles, as well as operating two different types of hydrogen-powered buses in its environmentally friendly bus fleet.
“We have long maintained that the key for accelerating public acceptance of alternative fueled vehicles is to show it in use today – not tomorrow," said SunLine General Manager C. Mikel Oglesby. “That’s the inspiration behind the Tour and why we’re excited to welcome it to the Coachella Valley."
Echoing those comments, Administrator Paul Brubaker of the Research and Innovative Technology Administration said, “The technology to put these kinds of vehicles on the road – and keep them moving – exists today. The question is not if hydrogen-powered vehicles will be available commercially, but when."
Tour sponsors and participants include the U.S. Department of Transportation, U.S. Department of Energy, California Fuel Cell Partnership and the National Hydrogen Association. They are being joined by automakers such as BMW, Daimler, Ford, GM, Honda, Hyundai-Kia, Nissan, Toyota, and Volkswagen. Meanwhile, Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. and Linde are providing mobile refueling stations and hydrogen fuel for the two-week event.
Following the local event, the vehicles will fuel up at SunFuels and get back on the road for the last leg of the Tour, traveling to the Los Angeles Exposition Park for the grand finale and finish line event.
About SunLine Transit Agency
SunLine Transit Agency is a joint powers authority formed in 1977 to operate the Coachella
Valley's public transportation system. Its vehicles travel more than 21 million passenger miles per
year, covering over 556 bus stops located throughout a 1,120 mile-service area. SunLine offers
fixed route bus service and curb-to-curb paratransit for the mobility impaired.