Hybrid Bucket Truck for GP&L

Garland, TX, October 26, 2011 – GP&L has a new hybrid bucket truck in its fleet of service vehicles. It will save on fuel and help the environment.

The large battery pack located in the truck bed powers the hydraulic equipment, including the jacks and the boom for the bucket. With the battery pack, the engine idles 75% less than a regular truck during bucket operations. In addition to using less fuel, the community benefits from the hybrid's reduced carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxide and hydrocarbon emissions.

Furthermore, when the truck is moving less than eleven miles per hour it operates off the battery. The utility could see up to a 60 percent savings in fuel for this vehicle.

The battery pack charges when the truck's engine is running, with an onboard computer managing the engine and the battery pack.

Manufactured in Garland by International, the vehicle is a medium-duty, standard bucket truck, with a reach of about 55 feet. It is considered a "backbone work truck," and will be in service just like any other GP&L bucket truck. Citizens can easily identify it with the green hybrid information labels on the truck.

Federal ARRA funds administered by the North Central Texas Council of Governments' Transportation Department are helping to make this acquisition possible.