(The Associated Press circulated the following article on February 22.)
OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific Railroad has unveiled a systemwide program that will reward locomotive engineers who conserve the most diesel fuel.
Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta on Wednesday lauded the Fuel Masters Program and Union Pacific, which is the world’s largest consumer of diesel. He says the program is an example of what’s needed to meet President George W. Bush’s goal of reducing oil imports by more than three-quarters by 2025.
Mineta saw the fuel-saving techniques as he rode in a locomotive from the western edge of Omaha to downtown.
The program compares engineers’ fuel consumption performance against fellow engineers in the same territory. Each month, engineers in the top 15 to 20 percent of each territory where Union Pacific operates are awarded fuel cards valued at $100 to buy gasoline for their personal vehicles.