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3 <br />and Central Services. The Purchasing and Central Services department regularly <br />monitors for opportunities to purchase good used CNG vehicles. <br />Ethanol (E 85) _Approximately 25 existing County vehicles are flex-fuel, capable of using <br />E 85. <br />Qther alternative fuel vehicles currently available on the market include <br />• Hybrids -There are two options for hybrid vehicles on State contract for the current year <br />- the two-door Insight sedan or hatchback at a cost of about $21,000 and the four door <br />Civic sedan at a cost of about $20,000 -both manufactured by Honda Motors., As a <br />paint of comparison, a gasoline fueled four-door sedan, the Dodge Neon, has a price tag <br />of just over $11,100, It should be noted that hybrid vehicles are usually considered to be <br />"borderline" alternative fuel vehicles, and most grant agencies will not fund their purchase <br />as an AFV. While hybrids do show emissions improvement when compared to <br />conventional gasoline vehicles, the emissions reductions are marginal compared to other <br />AFV's, However, hybrids do offer greater fi~eling flexibility than some other alternative <br />fuel options, <br />• Electric - As with the biodiesels, there are no options available on State contract. In <br />addition, research indicates that electric powered vehicles experience higher than normal <br />maintenance issues. <br />Attachment 1 of this abstract identifies where alternative fuel vehicles would be located. Should <br />the Board wish staff to explore other opportunities for purchase of alternative fuel vehicles <br />instead of gasoline fuel vehicles, staff would do so. <br />Emergency Medical Vehicles <br />The County currently has eight active ambulances and twelve IRVs responding to emergency <br />medical calls. The Board has approved replacement of six of the eight ambulances over the last <br />two fiscal years, The County's vehicle replacement schedule calls for the replacement of two <br />ambulances in the current fiscal year. Current mileage for the ambulances being replaced <br />ranges from a low of more than 215,000 miles to a high of more than 400,000 miles, The <br />average annual mileage for an ambulance is approximately 26,000 miles per vehicle, The cost <br />to purchase and equip two ambulances totals approximately $225,000 or approximately <br />$1 12,000 each. <br />The County currently has 12 IRVs in place.. Last spring, the Board approved the purchase of <br />replacement IRVs leaving ten 2002 or older models on the road.. The County's vehicle <br />replacement schedule provides for the replacement of two IRVs this spring. The current mileage <br />of 2002 model vehicles ranges from a low of approximately 85,000 miles to a high of <br />approximately 122,000 miles, <br />FINANCIAL IMPACT: The amount of funding required to purchase the equipment and vehicles <br />outlined on Attachment 1 totals $1,215,225, As indicated in the Background section above, <br />funding for the vehicle and equipment purchases would come from installment financing from <br />SunTrust Bank. In addition, staff plans to include the purchase of a compactor for the County's <br />Solid Waste Department on the same financing arrangement. (The Board approved the <br />