City of Tulsa launches new hybrid bus

Tulsa Transit wants local residents to breathe a little easier, so they unveiled a new, environmentally friendly bus.<br/><br/>It's the first of its kind in their fleet. That's because its powered

Wednesday, March 29th 2006, 4:28 pm

By: News On 6

Tulsa Transit wants local residents to breathe a little easier, so they unveiled a new, environmentally friendly bus.

It's the first of its kind in their fleet. That's because its powered by a General Motors diesel-electric hybrid propulsion system.

It will produce less emissions than the other busses, but city officials hope the big green bus will do more than that.

"People will see this bus and it will remind them not only do I have transit system, but when we have ozone alert days, 'what can I do as a citizen of Tulsa to help in the effort?'", says Tulsa Transit General Manager, Bill Cartwright.

The bus costs about $200,000 more than a regular bus, but city officials say it all evens out because of less fuel and maintenance costs.

80% of the new bus was funded by the federal government, the other 20% was paid for by the city.