MUNI to Retrofit 375 Diesel Buses to Improve Air Quality

SAN FRANCISCO--Jan. 2, 20048, 2004--In December 2003, the San Francisco Municipal Railway started retrofitting the first of 375 diesel buses with a new emission control system designed to improve air quality by reducing soot and smog.

The new emission control system, called the Longview, is produced by Cleaire Advanced Emission Controls in San Leandro. It is the first product that can be installed on existing diesel engines to reduce both particulate matter, the small particles of black soot in diesel exhaust, and oxides of nitrogen (NOx), a prime contributor to smog. Both particulate matter and smog have been linked to asthma and other respiratory illnesses.

Widespread adoption of this technology should have a significant effect on air quality as it lowers the particulate matter by 85 percent and NOx by 25 percent, according to the California Air Resources Board. The emission control system will be installed on the exhaust system of the buses.

Funding for this new system will come from $13.8 million in federal monies allocated to 12 Bay Area transit agencies this year by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission. MUNI will be the first of the agencies to install the devices under this program and expects to complete the project in 2004.

"Retrofitting diesel engines to reduce harmful emissions makes an immediate improvement in air quality," said Michael Burns, executive director of the Municipal Transportation Agency and recent recipient of the Bay Area Air Quality Management District's Clean Air Award. "This project, in addition to our electric bus and rail service, makes MUNI one of the cleanest transit fleets in the country. It reflects our commitment to protect the health of our riders while providing dependable service."

The Longview system already is in use on more than 100 diesel buses and trucks throughout California, including the Central Contra Costa Transit Authority and Caltrans vehicles. The Contra Costa agency negotiated the purchase price on behalf of multiple transit properties in the Bay Area, meaning that all agencies do not have to go through the lengthy process of soliciting bids for identical products.

Cleaire is a division of Cummins West, Inc., the Cummins engine distributor for northern and central California. Fleetguard Emission Solutions, a wholly owned subsidiary of Cummins, Inc., markets the Longview nationally, offering installation capacity and product support through the Cummins distribution network. Cleaire is also developing other products to address specific segments of the diesel engine population.