GREENWOOD, SC - The Greenwood County Council voted May 3 to convert nearly half of the 40-car sheriff's office fleet of marked uniform patrol vehicles to run on propane, reported GwdToday.

Nineteen sheriff's office vehicles will be retrofitted to propane hybrid cars. The patrol vehicles will be outfitted with an "add-on" system, according to Jimmy Brown, the County's fleet garage supervisor, and primarily run on propane with the option to convert to gasoline if the car's propane levels were low.

By converting the sheriff's office cars, the County could see huge savings over the next fiscal year, with propane fuel costs approximately $2.50 per gallon cheaper than unleaded gasoline, reported GwdToday.

Alliance AutoGas of Asheville, N.C., will provide the County's propane for the next four years and also install the infrastructure where the hybrid cars will refuel.