Collins Bus at Frontlines of Alternative Fuel Technology

By Ryan Gray

With recent statements made by school bus manufacturers that they expect an additional 20- to 30-percent downturn in school bus production this year amid the struggling economy, things seem to be looking up for Collins Bus Corporation. Today's news that company will be bringing to market a propane-powered Type A school bus represents the second first-ever moment for the nation's largest manufacturer of small school buses.

Earlier this year, Collins announced a deal with Azure Dynamics to produce the first-ever, straight-from-the-assembly-line hybrid electric drive train for a Type A school bus. Built for the Ford E-450 cutaway chassis, the NEXBUS hybrid runs on gasoline power and is already in use in Napa Valley (Calif.) Unified School District and at Durham School Services contracts in Rosemead, Calif., in the Los Angeles area.

Following no the heels of the NEXBUS is the yet named liquid propane Type A that company officials said will go into production this fall, likely as of Nov. 1 when the company begins its 2009-2010 production year. Certainly Collins has schematics drawn up, at least, as rumors of a propane-powered small school bus have been making the rounds for a couple of months. Up until now, the only straight-from-manufacturer propane school bus came in the form of Blue Bird's Type C Vision. Blue Bird also manufactures a Type A school bus, the Micro Bird, but so far the company has yet to say it has plans to transition the propane technology to a smaller load vehicle. And, for years, there has been propane conversion kit technology. But recent advances by Blue Bird in solving engine power issues and a partnership with propane distributor and infrastructure specialist CleanFUELS USA, which Collins is also working with, has made the alternative fuel more attractive to fleet owners, not to mention a 50 cent per gallon federal tax rebate and a big investment by the feds and some states.

Speaking of which, Collins is already concentrating on interested school district and private fleet customers in Texas, which has one of the largest propane infrastructures in the nation. The Lone Star state is receiving upwards of $25 million from U.S. Department of Energy Clean Cities grants for new propane vehicles and fueling stations, plus California and New York. And the company has a dealer network of 70 to fall back on.

Amid buzz that GM could go the route of offering a hybrid electric diesel chassis for school buses, but nothing concrete yet, Collins certainly appears to be taking the reigns of the Type A alternative market.