Given the green light: STM buses are running on biodiesel!

Press release


 

Given the green light:
STM buses are running on biodiesel!

Montreal, November 19, 2007 - This week, the STM will begin supplying its fleet of buses with a 5% blend of biodiesel, referred to as B5. The initiative follows an announcement made earlier in October about the two-year group purchase contract that was awarded to Groupe p�trolier OLCO inc. for procuring diesel and biodiesel fuel that promotes the use of recycled cooking oils and animal fats.

Thus, the STM is gradually fuelling its fleet of city buses with biodiesel, beginning with buses at Frontenac bus depot, that services some 20 bus routes, including the 10 – De Lorimier, 15 – Sainte-Catherine, 94 – D’Iberville, 25 – Ontario and 139 – Pie IX, among others. Implementation throughout all STM bus garages should be completed by early summer next year.

All STM buses will be clearly identified by the Biobus logo and display the message Ce bus roule au biodiesel (“This bus is running on biodiesel”) on their rear bumper. Clients can also pick up an information flier aboard buses or consult the company website at (http://www.stm.info/en-bref/environnement_ann.htm) to find out more about biodiesel.

“As announced last March, the STM has chosen biodiesel fuels in support of its commitment to sustainable development,” declared Board of Directors chairman, Claude Trudel. “This measure will be of benefit to all transit users and Montrealers who will enjoy improved air quality.”

The STM’s use of B5 will lead to a 6 400-tonne reduction in CO2 emissions, equal to removing from our highways some 1300 cars, each one running an average of 20 000 km a year. Once the deployment of B5 is complete, the STM will evaluate its option of using a more concentrated blend of biodiesel, as an on-going way of optimizing the alternative fuel’s environmental impact.

From March 2002 to March 2003, the STM had used Frontenac’s 155 buses for the biobus project, an experimental demonstration and assessment project that produced very positive results.

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