With gasoline prices high again, universities are looking for ways to reduce their long-term reliance on the fuel.
Hybrid vehicles, ethanol, alternative-fuel research, and car-sharing programs are some of the ideas being examined or phased in at many larger institutions. The plans will take years to execute, but officials hope to have the fuel-price problem under control within the next few years.
Nationwide, the average price for regular gas was $3.70 per gallon last week. That’s up from about $2.90 a year ago, and around $2.70 in 2009. Diesel fuel costs, on average, about $4.01 per gallon, while gasoline blended with ethanol is about $3.23 per gallon.
Most experts attribute rising gas prices to increasing demand in Asia and political turmoil in the Middle East. Prices are expected to keep rising over the next few years.
The University of Florida, like many institutions, is turning to ethanol-fueled vehicles. Since 2007 it has worked to replace aging or broken-down fleet vehicles with similar models fueled by ethanol. More than 200 vehicles in the university’s 1,800-vehicle fleet now run on ethanol, says Jonathan Priest, maintenance superintendent at the motor pool.
Similar measures are being taken on the University of Minnesota’s flagship campus, but the fleet-services office there is also looking to begin purchasing hybrid-electric vehicles.
William G. Stahlmann, assistant director of fleet and transit services on the Twin Cities campus, says the university is considering hybrid models and is on the waiting list for the Nissan Leaf, a car that runs entirely on electricity.
Such vehicles are more expensive than their gasoline-only counterparts, but Mr. Stahlmann says he is working under the assumption that fuel prices will skyrocket, which would make the investment worthwhile.
Hybrid vehicles also have, on average, a higher resale value. “The money I’m investing upfront, I’ll be able to recoup on the back end,” he says. “In the meantime, I’ll be able to pump less fuel into the gas tanks.”
Three years ago, the university joined a coalition of about 50 state agencies and departments that bids to buy gas at a set price at the beginning of the year. This year coalition members pay $2.73 a gallon for regular unleaded gasoline and $2.43 a gallon for the gasoline-ethanol blend. The university is saving money now, says Mr. Stahlman, but expects to pay a lot more in coming years.
“It’s more of a budgeting tool than a way to save money,” he says, since one-price purchasing spares the university from unpleasant midyear shocks if gas prices rise.
Filling Up Over Budget
The rising price of gasoline and diesel fuel has Ohio State University in a pickle. The university has spent $40,000 more on fuel than it budgeted for the 2011 fiscal year, which ends on June 30, and is dipping into its parking-fee reserves in order to cover the difference.
Sarah Blouch, executive director for transportation and parking, says that the reserves will be enough to cover the deficit this year, but that the university is looking for ways to decrease its reliance on diesel fuel, which powers most of its fleet.
Decreasing the number of buses on campus is not an option, she says—that would just increase traffic. Her office has asked the university’s Center for Automotive Research and Institute for Energy and the Environment to determine the best possible fuel alternatives. Among other possibilities, says Ms. Blouch, they are looking at compressed natural gas, which is cheaper and cleaner-burning than conventional gas. But any substantial changeover is years away.
“It’s expensive to retool, and we don’t want to force people into things,” she says. “Then again, with fuel prices going up—and I don’t think they’re going down anytime soon—we need to have other options.”
The university is also trying to cut back vehicle use by faculty and staff members, who often turn to cars to get to meetings around the Ohio State’s large campus. Ms. Blouch says a few departments purchased small electric vehicles to transport faculty and staff members, but the cars are expensive and battery reliability has been a problem. Now she’s considering a dial-a-ride service, although it’s still in the discussion stage.
