CITY'S ALTERNATIVE-FUELED VEHICLES BREATH OF FRESH AIR.

Byline: Erin Gebroe Daily News Staff Writer

They accelerate like standard trucks, steer like standard trucks and brake like standard trucks. But the city's new Ford F-250s won't be rolling through the local Chevron.

While offering a comfortable ride, the city's newest additions to its vehicle fleet run on natural gas, emitting 90 percent less ozone-causing emissions than standard cars. Along with the $23,000 trucks, which were paid for with a state grant, the city now has the only compressed natural gas fueling station in the Santa Clarita Valley.

``It's a great way to go, and certainly it's a clean, environmental way to go,'' Santa Clarita Mayor Jo Anne Darcy said Tuesday while presenting one of the trucks. ``Hopefully, it will start a trend for other people to buy the vehicle.''

The trucks raise the number of alternative fuel vehicles in the city's fleet to five. In addition to the two natural gas vehicles, there are three leased electric vehicles - the General Motors EV1, the Honda EV Plus and the Ford Ranger truck.

But for construction areas, the natural gas vehicles so far seem to be more practical than the electric cars, said management analyst Kevin Tonoian of the Planning and Building Services Department.

``This has better clearance,'' Tonoian said. The electric cars, which are lower to the ground, cannot access as many unpaved construction sites, he said.

Geotechnical engineer Balvinder Sandhu, who drives one of the natural gas trucks, said the truck works well and that he cannot tell the difference between it and a regular truck.

``It's convenient to drive closer to the actual grading site in a vehicle like that, especially during the rainy days when we have to go out and inspect for erosion problems,'' Sandhu said.

The natural gas truck also can travel up to 300 miles before needing to be refueled, whereas the electric vehicles run out of power after 80 to 100 miles.

Fueling costs about $1,000 a year for the natural gas vehicles and $600 for the electric vehicles.

Employees like the electric vehicles, too. Facility maintenance worker Brian Rosenfeld said they are neighborhood-friendly because they are so quiet.

If it weren't for the dashboard gauge that reads ``on'' and ``off,'' drivers might not be able to tell whether the engine is running.

``We drive through the paseos a lot, near residential areas. The electric vehicle would be a little nicer soundwise,'' Rosenfeld said. ``I think it's a great idea, and I think eventually most people will be driving electric vehicles or the natural gas.''

But whether the alternative fuel vehicles are truly the wave of the future remains to be seen.

``As the technology advances and we see how the market is going,'' Tonoian said, ``we'll make some decisions down the road in terms of how we're going to replenish the city's vehicle fleet.''

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2 Photos

PHOTO (1--Color) Cameron Smyth, state Senator W.J. ``Pete'' Knight's deputy chief of staff, tests the city's new electric truck.

(2) Maintenance worker Brian Rosenfeld gets ready to take the city's new electric truck out for a drive.

Shaun Dyer/Special to the Daily News