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Fairfield Leads the Way in Green Fuels

Ed Boman brought the idea of adding compressed natural gas power to his bosses at Fairfield's Department of Public Works 16 years ago. Back then, Fairfield just had a small pump near the DPW garage and took an entire night to fill up one car.

But with the grand opening of the town’s upgraded compressed natural gas filling station Friday afternoon, Fairfield took another step toward showing that it is among the leaders in the state in powering its vehicles with fuels other than gasoline.

“The town has really embraced [alternative fuels],” said Boman, DPW’s assistant director and coalition coordinator for Southwestern Connecticut Clean Cities. “The political leadership of this town is behind it 100 percent.”

Fairfield is one of only nine Connecticut towns to have a compressed natural gas station. Compared with gasoline power, vehicles that run on the system get better mileage per gallon, cost less to run (CNG now costs about $1.70 per gallon), break down less frequently and emit almost no greenhouse gases. Fairfield’s fleet has 30 vehicles that run on compressed natural gas. They range from sedans to the Senior Center’s buses, and even include two school buses.

But Fairfield’s new wave of greener fueling extends to the average driver as well. United Illuminating and General Electric recently installed two electric car-charging stations in downtown Fairfield. One is in the parking lot behind Sherman Green, the other in the commuter lot at the Fairfield train station. The new Whole Foods store on Grasmere Avenue also included two charging stations in its parking lot. All provide recharging to electric-powered cars for free.

Boman said electric charging is the next focus for Connecticut Clean Cities. He said the group plans to work with similar groups across the Northeast to put together a handbook for drivers looking to buy the cars and for emergency responders who might have to deal with them in accidents.

"We’ve has natural gas for 15 years—everybody knows about that,” Boman said. “Electric’s the future.”

Photo identification, from left: Innovation Drive CEO Carla York, Fairfield DPW assistant director Ed Boman, U.S. Rep. Jim Himes, Greater New Haven Clean Cities Coordinator Lee Grannis and First Selectman Michael Tetreau.

Do you own a car that runs on electricity or another alternative fuel? Share your experience with it in the comments below.

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