ASSESSMENT OF INSTITUTIONAL BARRIERS TO THE USE OF NATURAL GAS FUEL IN AUTOMOTIVE VEHICLE FLEETS

Institutional barriers to the use of natural gas as a fuel for motor vehicle fleets were identified and assessed. Recommendations for barrier removal were then developed. The research technique was a combination of literature review and interviews of knowledgeable persons in government and industry, including fleet operators and marketers of natural gas vehicles and systems. Eight types of institutional barriers were identified and assessed. The most important were two safety-related barriers: (1) lack of a national standard for the safety design and certification of natural gas vehicles and refueling stations; and (2) excessively conservative or misapplied state and local regulations, including bridge and tunnel restrictions, restrictions on types of vehicles that may be fueled by natural gas, zoning regulations that prohibit operation of refueling stations, parking restrictions, application of LPG standards to LNG vehicles, and unintentionally unsafe vehicle or refueling station requirements. Other barriers addressed include: (3) need for clarification of EPA's tampering enforcement policy; (4) the US hydrocarbon standard; (5) uncertainty concerning state utility commission jurisdiction; (6) sale-for-resale prohibitions imposed by natural gas utility companies or state utility commissions; (7) uncertainty of the effects of conversions to natural gas on vehicle manufacturers warranties; and (8) need for a naturalmore » gas to gasoline-equivalent-units conversion factor for use in calculation of state road use taxes. Insurance on natural gas vehicles, and state emissions and anti-tampering regulations were also investigated as part of the research but were not found to be barriers.« less