According to General Motors (GM), AT&T plans to take delivery of 1,200 Chevrolet Express compressed natural gas (CNG) dedicated cargo vans, which will be deployed to AT&T service centers nationwide. It is the largest-ever order of CNG vehicles from General Motors.
AT&T, which had previously announced it would invest up to $565 million to deploy some 15,0000 alternative-fuel vehicles over a 10-year period through 2018, will use the vans to provide and maintain communications, high-speed Internet and television services. “CNG technology is important to AT&T because it helps us reduce our fleet-based carbon emissions,” said Jerome Webber, AT&T vice president of Fleet Operations. “It is also cost-effective and readily available in our country right now.”
“There are millions of fleet vehicles on the road today and we want to be a critical part of this sustainable revolution, helping make these conversions as easy as possible,” said Brian Small, general manager, GM Fleet and Commercial Operations.
According to GM, Chevrolet Express CNG vans are powered by a Vortec 6.0-liter V8 engine equipped with hardened exhaust valves as well as intake and exhaust valve seats for improved wear resistance and durability with gaseous fuel systems. The vans are factory-ordered and delivered to customers with their factory-engineered and fully integrated gaseous fuel system in place.
The CNG option is available for order on Chevrolet Express 2500 and 3500 Cargo vans. Each van is covered by GM’s three-year, 36,000-mile new vehicle limited warranty and five-year, 100,000-mile limited powertrain warranty, and meets all Environmental Protection Agency and California Air Resources Board emission certification requirements.
