City leaders in Lawrence are putting the brakes on plans to purchase new buses for their public transportation fleet. They're giving another look at using compressed natural gas as a power source. The city had planned to buy three diesel and diesel-electric hybrid buses, but it's re-thinking the purchase because of the lower cost of natural gas.
A feasibility study four years ago compared the fuel costs, but that was before natural gas prices dropped and supplies increased.
The average price for diesel fuel nationally is about $3.90 per gallon.
By comparison, compressed natural gas sells for about $2.10 per gallon, and it's as low as $1 per gallon in some parts of the country.