Arlington County Virginia

Ric Hiller - Bureau Chief, Arlington County Virginia

“It’s a no-brainer to use biodiesel,” said Ric Hiller, Bureau Chief for Arlington County, Virginia. “By using the biodiesel we’ve eliminated the particulate and the big black plume. We’re doing good for the environment and we’re reducing our petroleum use by 20 percent,” said Hiller.

Arlington County’s fleet of biodiesel-fueled vehicles is approximately 350 vehicles, which includes 125 school buses, all its heavy trucks, and all its construction equipment. “Our operators really don’t notice a difference,” Hiller said of performance versus using diesel.

Hiller felt the change from regular diesel to biodiesel was transparent. “For us it was very simple to change over from straight diesel to the biodiesel,” he said. “We added external filters on our dispensers, we made sure our tanks were clean and we had plenty of extra fuel filters. That way the changeover was very simple and really without any problems.

“If you’re a fleet administrator, I would highly recommend using and trying biodiesel,” said Hiller. “One, you’re reducing your requirement for foreign substance fuel and two, you’re using a renewable fuel. I’d say try it, I think you’ll like it.”