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From YouTube: Charlotte Fire Department continues efforts to Go Green
Description
The Charlotte Fire Department is one of the first fire departments nationwide to begin implementing clean transportation technologies into their fleet. Nearly half of the fire trucks utilize an Auxiliary Power Unit, while at least 8 more have been ordered.
A
B
B
We
arrived
on
the
scene,
approximately
two
minutes,
two
and
a
half
minutes
later.
The
APU
will
start
and
once
the
main
motor
of
the
truck
sees
that
hitch
up
and
running,
it
will
actually
shut
down.
And
then
the
APU
will
continue
to
power
all
of
our
emergency
lights
and
our
heating
and
air
conditioning
nearly.
A
B
Trucks
were
averaging
about
three
and
a
half
gallons
of
fuel
to
4
gallons
of
fuel,
an
hour
that
they
were
burning,
the
APU
once
it
kicks
in
it
only
burns
a
half
a
gallon,
the
fuel
and
our
fuel
savings
would
be
all
based
on
the
price
of
fuel,
but
we're
seeing
an
average
of
about
seventeen
hundred
and
two
thousand
dollars
a
year
per
truck
and
fuel
savings.
Approximately.
A
Two
thousand
dollars
in
fuel
savings
for
27
trucks
totals
$54,000
a
year
fleet
manager,
captain
Buddy
Caldwell,
also
says
the
APU
technology
cuts
out
one
preventative
maintenance
each
year,
saving
at
least
another
two
thousand
dollars
per
year
per
truck
for
a
total
estimated
savings
of
108
thousand
dollars
annually.
There
is,
however,
an
investment
to
install
the
APU
about
seventeen
thousand
dollars
per
truck,
but
coldwell
says
it
more
than
pays
for
itself,
probably.