With over 32 years in the transportation industry, Vic La Rosa, President of Total Transportation Systems (TTSI) knows trucks. He runs 350 trucks nationwide and 30 Westport HD LNG Trucks.
He also knows the impact the trucking industry has made on the environment. So when Vic saw an opportunity to add trucks to his fleet that run on cheaper, cleaner-burning, domestically available natural gas, without having to compromise performance or fuel economy, he seized it with the Westport HD GX engine and liquefied natural gas (LNG) fuel system.
Vic on why he chose Westport HD powered LNG trucks
“In 2007, the Ports were mulling around a Clean Air Action program. We pretty much determined that the future was going to really dictate a major movement to alternative fuels. The only thing being developed in the market place at the time that was truly alternative and would get the job done was LNG.”
“There was a tremendous fear about natural gas. It was an unknown. There were a lot of people that were not too confident (in) natural gas. In the last year, a lot of that angst has disappeared. The drivers are really starting to embrace it. They’re finding that the technology does work.”
…on driving experience
“We haul anything from wearing apparel, which would be 25–30 thousand pound load all the way to maximum loads of 44–45 thousand pounds, which would be scrap-metal. The driving experience has been very, very good. It’s a quiet ride; it’s a comfortable ride; it gets the job done in terms of horsepower. We’re very pleased with the results. We want to, by the early part of next year, have at least 50% of the fleet committed to natural gas.”
…on sustainability
“We are heavily committed as a company to sustain a green environment. Our corporate goal is to embrace any new technology that will get us cleaner. Because of the density of population of most port cities it’s extremely important that the trucks that move in those areas are the cleanest that they can possibly be. Sustainability is the key.”