LOS ANGELES, CA – The Board of Airport Commissioners has approved the purchase of 30 alternative-fuel buses and trucks for use at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) as part of its ongoing replacement of existing gasoline-powered vehicles when they reach the end of their useful service life in the airport’s fleet. The Board approved the purchase of 21 compressed natural gas transit buses; three liquefied-petroleum-gas (LPG), light- and medium-duty refuse trucks; and six LPG stakebed trucks.

The 21 buses will be purchased for $7,885,648 from North American Bus Industries, Inc. Reynolds Buick Pontiac GMC Trucks, Inc., will provide the refuse trucks at $265,337.51 and the stakebed trucks at $383,228.78.

Officials at Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA), the City department that owns and operates LAX and three other Southern California airports, believe that alternative-fuel vehicles are important elements in meeting California’s future energy needs, and plans are underway to convert all of LAWA’s fleet to alternative-fuel use.

LAWA currently has more than 500 alternative-fuel vehicles in its fleet powered by liquefied natural gas, liquefied petroleum gas, compressed natural gas, electric, solar power, and hydrogen fuel cell.

Separately, the Board adopted policies to require hotel courtesy shuttles serving LAX to reduce the number of shuttle vehicles and trips they make to the airport. LAWA officials said improvements in air quality and traffic congestion can be achieved by mandatory reduction in the number of hotel shuttle trips and by conversion of new or replacement shuttle buses to alternative fuel.

The new program calls for the reduction of the permitted number of trips made by hotel courtesy shuttles in two stages, using the number of trips in 2004 as a benchmark. By May 2007, the number of trips will have to be cut by 15 percent of their 2004 total. By Jan. 2008, trips will have to be cut by 35 percent of the 2004 total. Penalties per trip will be assessed on each trip where the hotel fails to meet the required reduced percentage.

Additionally, courtesy shuttles serving the hotels must convert to alternative-fuel vehicles. Hotels are allowed to sign contracts with consolidators who provide shuttle service to patrons of more than one hotel.

Officials expect 39 of the 46 hotels in the LAX area will be affected by the program. The remaining seven hotels operate less than the minimum of 1,000 annual trips and are exempt from the program’s mandatory consolidation and penalties. These smaller hotels still will pay a standard fee per trip unless they reduce their trips by 35 percent and convert to alternative-fuel vehicles.

LAWA is requiring the mandatory program and setting penalties for non-compliance to ensure participating hotels are not at a competitive disadvantage. Hotel patrons using the consolidated courtesy shuttle service do not change vehicles or transfer luggage.

The action followed a successful voluntary effort begun last April, where nine of 46 airport-area hotels consolidated their courtesy shuttle operations by using a single company that transported guests between LAX and two or three hotels on fixed routes. These nine hotels account for 50 percent of the 600,000 annual vehicle trips between LAX and airport-area hotels. Their voluntary participation cut the number of shuttle trips to and from LAX by 55 percent, well above the program’s requirement of 35 percent