JUTC faced PAAC on Wednesday September 17th 2014 – JUTC Buses can’t run on ULSD as LPG Better for the JUTC Buses Fuel Injectors

“We have gotten some among the spare parts and we have ordered more, because we have not finished with the entire fleet. We didn’t buy all of them at one time, because you can refurbish them at about half the price…So we do them in sets”

Deputy Managing Director, John Campbell, responding to queries at the PAAC Meeting on Wednesday 17^th September 2014

Wednesday 17^th September 2014 is a day in Jamaican Parliament many who follows the ups and down of the JUTC (Jamaica Urban Transit Company) will not quite forget.  Especially if you’re a SDA (Seventh Day Adventists)!

Good to note that as of Sunday September 14^th 2014, you have a SmarterCard to travel on the JUTC Bus as stated in my blog article entitled “JUTC SmarterCard improves - Why JUTC faces PAAC for Operations and Lawsuits Billions as KMTR Commuters Cashless Reprieve”. Yes, I’m STILL Boycotting the JUTC Buses, now one year onwards.

It is on this day that the JUTC’s Managing Director Colin Campbell and Deputy Managing Director, John Campbell (are they related?) faced the PAAC (Public Administration and Appropriations Committee) at Gordon House with regards to the finances and the general running of the JUTC. This are reported in the article “JUTC tackling smoking buses -- MD”, published Friday, September 19, 2014 7:18 AM By Balford Henry, Senior Staff Reporter, The Jamaica Observer.

Of particular note was the amount of fuel the Vehicles used and why they had to be belching black smoke, a question that was raised by Opposition MP Audley Shaw. Interestingly, the issue gained bipartisan support when Minister of Transport, Water, Environment and Climate Change, Robert Pickersgill pointed out that under the Road Traffic Act, these JUTC Buses were not Roadworthy Vehicles.

It’s interesting because I’ve heard this argument before.

JUTC Buses and the SDA’s Comments – Buses in contravention of Road Traffic Act

This is interesting as the SDA’s have pointed out is actually in contravention of 1938 Road Traffic Act, Section 43 (2) which imposes a JA$4000 fine for smoking Vehicles as stated in the article “Ban smoking cars too, say Adventists”, Published Friday June 28, 2013, The Jamaica Gleaner.

For those with good memories, those statements came from the Health Ministries Director of the Jamaica Union Conference of Seventh Day Adventists Dr Milton Gregory, a few days after the Tuesday June 25^th 2013, the date when Minister of Health Dr. Fenton Ferguson imposed the Ban on Smoking along with fines as detailed in my blog article entitled “Adventists want Ban on Vehicle Pollution as Smoking Ban looms on Saturday July 15 2013 - Dr. Fenton Ferguson's Escape Plan leads”.

On the Friday June 28^th 2013, in a Press Release from the Jamaica Union Conference of Seventh Day Adventists,  Health Ministries Director of the Jamaica Union Conference of Seventh Day Adventists Dr Milton Gregory, pointed this issue of smoking buses in the context of the smoking Ban, quote: “Every day, thousands of Jamaicans breathe heavily polluted air, which is filled with poisonous vehicular smoke emissions consisting of pollutants such as carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, suspended sulphates, sulphur dioxide, nitrates, lead, dirt and soot”.

So it seems curious back then as it is now almost a year later, that the JUTC Buses are running in contravention of the Road Traffic Act yet a Smoking Ban exists.

JUTC Buses can’t run on ULSD – LPG Better for the JUTC Buses Fuel Injectors

Their excuse?

According to JUTC’s Managing Director Colin Campbell, the JUTC Buses are having problems running on the ULSD (Ultra Low Sulphur Diesel) fuel that was launched by Minister of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining back on Monday June 24^th 2013 as I’d reported in my blog article entitled “Ministry of Technology launches ULSD on Monday June 24th 2013 - Lower Sulphur in Diesel open possibility of the Bio-Fuel Industry Hammer of the Gods (2013) to wean ourselves of Imported Fuel”.

As these JUTC Buses run on Diesel, they have no spark plugs. Instead, they use Fuel Injectors and compression to turn the Piston inside of the Engine and more the Bus, like any other Diesel Vehicle. But long before the ULSD came out, these vehicles were always billowing black smoke, suggesting that whether regular Diesel or ULSD, they’re not designed for the level of sulphur in our Diesel.

To this end, it would be best that they use LPG (Liquid Petroleum Gas) the same fuel used for Cooking Gas that also happens to be cheaper than Diesel as suggested in my blog article entitled “JUTC SmarterCard Cashless System to be implemented in the Fourth Quarter of 2013 - Upgrade buses to use LPG Fuel to reduce Maintenance costs”.

LPG is a gas so it burns more cleanly as described in my Geezam blog article entitled “Auto LPG as a Motor Vehicle Fuel”. It has the same energy content as Diesel and because it already a gas, it’s more efficient in how that energy is released during combustion in the Diesel Engine’s Cylinders.

Most importantly, it would prevent the incidence of JUTC Bus fires as again explained in my blog article entitled “JUTC SmarterCard Cashless System to be implemented in the Fourth Quarter of 2013 - Upgrade buses to use LPG Fuel to reduce Maintenance costs”. This is either deliberately set or from arson, as if the pressure is too low, a JUTC Bus running on LPG will not start, making it difficult for anyone to rig the buses to catch afire unless they use an incendiary device.

So will the JUTC make the switch the LPG now that it’s obvious their fuel saving measures will be for naught as replacing or modifying damaged Fuel Injectors is an expensive process? This is worth watching as such a change would mean the JUTC would have to pass on fuel saving and reduced maintenance costs to commuters.