Los Angeles to power buses with fuel made from 100% organic waste

Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) will be refuelling its bus fleet with renewable natural gas (RNG) after it awarded a contract to Clean Energy Fuels Corp.

Clean Energy will supply Redeem, the first renewable and commercially available vehicle fuel made entirely from 100% organic waste, according to a company release.

For the initial year, Redeem will be provided to a Metro natural gas station, which refuels approximately 200 compressed natural gas (CNG) buses. Execution of an additional option will make Redeem the selected fuel for the entire fleet of 2,200 buses for four more years.

"We are continuously assessing new technologies in transportation and perform a rigorous analysis before adopting anything," said John Drayton, Metro Director of Vehicle Technology. "In this case, transitioning to renewable natural gas along with the use of low NOx engines reduces our fleet's NOx emissions by 90%, so it was an easy decision."