All Dialed In

Feeling quite comfortable with my “CNG Beast” now that I have surpassed over 35,000 miles and two services on it, I wanted to compile my most recent data to see where I am on my road to saving through alternative fuel.  In my last report, just a few short months after getting the natural gas truck, I was still learning the ins and outs of operating an entirely new concept.  Although CNG is a proven alternative fuel in the realm of transportation, it was definitely something new to me.
 
Now that I have had time to find the fueling stations, get comfortable with the operational features, and push my fuel tanks to their very limits of all but running out, I now have a grip on what this truck really can do for anyone willing to dive into the realm of CNG!  In the following chart, I have compiled fueling information dating back to when I felt I had become adjusted to operating this beast, which was actually around mid-August.  Although I feel I could get into any truck and operate it in a safe and professional manner, it takes a certain amount of retraining of the brain to break old habits and get comfortable with new ones.  In my becoming more comfortable, I have also been able to go further in between fill ups, which means precious operating hours saved every week.  Unlike my previous update data chart, this one happens to use calculation formulas from the EPA that are industry standards for alternative fuel calculations.  This chart attempts to compare what I currently operate in CNG numbers directly to the numbers that I would have seen running my previous diesel truck and similar to what my other friends calculate on paper that they do in the same line of work as I am in.  A quick reminder that I do have a higher than average CPM (cents per mile) than an average OTR driver, but that is due to running locally in Southern California traffic all day, every day!  Another reminder that I have chosen convenience of an easier to access fueling station as my regular station in lieu of choosing the absolute lowest priced station in the area, which would drop the cost of fuel even lower.  I still think the $.03 I have shaved off my operating costs, amounting to just over $2K in three months is not too shabby at all.  A penny saved is a penny earned!!!