| Issue 53 | September 29, 1995 |
NJ Diesel Commitment Stands Out
Monday's Trenton Times carried a front-page report saying NJ Transit was "stuck in gear" relative to U.S. transit agencies that are abandoning diesel buses as part of efforts to fight urban pollution and protect public health. NJ Transit runs the second largest transit bus operation in the country, but relies completely on diesel and has no plans to include alternative-fuel buses in its 3,000 bus fleet. The article was generated by the Tri-State Campaign's Dump Diesel efforts. NJ Transit contends new diesel technology makes diesels nearly as "clean" as alternatives. But Chris Lieske, an EPA environmental engineer, says that compressed natural gas engines test well below emissions measured from diesel engines. The article observed that "NJ Transit is following a strategy markedly different from that of transit authorities in Cleveland and Los Angeles." Both cities have begun to convert bus fleets from diesel to compressed natural gas.
