This is a good question that has been asked in the 80’s during the last major fuel crisis, and is being asked in some places in the country now, during the current fuel crisis.  So what ever happened to the movement toward CNG as a good alternative to the usual gasoline?

Another good question.  During the 80’s, CNG was an idea whose time had come.  It began being used in many municipalities throughout the country to power mass transit vehicles, such as buses, as well as government employee vehicles and vehicles for many organizations throughout the country. 

At that time there was a push toward using CNG and there were fuel stations that began carrying CNG.  Automakers were beginning to create the double tanks needed to carry enough fuel to help cars travel long enough distances to make it worth their while. 

Once the fuel crisis of the 80’s ended and the hysteria died down, so did the interest in building the CNG supply.   Where there were once ideas regarding how to create more filling stations and how to make it feasible for even private individuals to have CNG tanks, there was simply no activity.  It was as though this was just forgotten.

Some municipalities continued to use CNG and still use it today for many of their vehicles.  Some continued to quietly develop CNG and look for the ways and means of distributing and using it.  As a result, there is still an interest in CNG as an alternative fuel.

With fuel prices topping $4 per gallon, which is much higher than it cost during the 1980’s and much higher than the $1.50 per gallon for CNG, interest is building continually.  Many of the ideas and plans being put forth for alternative fuels today include CNG.  It is readily available.  It burns clean.  It is cost effective.  It diminishes foreign oil dependence.  It eliminates the need for at least a portion of fossil fuels.

With all of these positives, even with the obstacles, CNG may be worth a second look.

Tags: CNG, compressed natural gas, fossil fuels, Fuel Alternatives, fuel prices

This entry was posted on Thursday, August 28th, 2008 at 4:46 pm and is filed under Gas Prices. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.