High oil prices may encourage natural gas cars

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Now may be a great time to own a vehicle that burns natural gas. The renewable energy source is currently priced at $1.93 a gallon, according to USA Today, almost $2 less than a gallon regular gasoline.

Natural gas-powered models

Despite the low cost of fuel, only a small number of commercially available vehicles can actually run on natural gas. Honda recently announced it was going to start selling its natural gas-powered 2011 Civic in every state this year, after previously only offering the model to government fleets and individual buyers in New York, California, Utah and Oklahoma. To date, the vehicles aren't huge sellers - the Associated Press reports that Honda only sells about 1,500 natural-gas Civics a year.

Ford also manufacturers a natural-gas burning car, although it has mainly been sold to taxicab companies at this point. With a low load floor and tall roof the Transit Connect car-truck is made for passengers, while GreenCar.com reports the vehicle is about 30 percent more fuel-efficient than traditional taxis. Rod Phillips, Ford's commercial business manager for the New England area, said more businesses have expressed interest in Transit Connect as gas prices continue to climb.

"Fleet managers are adding all the reasons up and concluding that it makes sense to switch to CNG [compressed natural gas] now more than ever," he said.

Current legislation

During a recent speech about American energy concerns, President Barack Obama endorsed the benefits of natural gas-powered vehicles. The NAT GAS Act - legislation that provides incentives to fuel cars with natural gas instead of oil - will shortly be introduced to Congress, which lawmakers hope will increase the use of natural gas in the transportation sector.

According to Natural Gas Vehicles for America, a Washington trade association, there are currently about 110,000 natural gas-powered vehicles on American roadways. But, there are only 1,000 fueling stations in the nation, with only half of those open to the public.

While natural gas can reduce the nation's reliance of foreign oil, save fuel and provide an affordable way for the average person to power their cars, some groups are concerned drilling for the substance can have dire environmental impacts. In some cases fracking - the process of drilling for natural gas - has been found to contaminate groundwater sources with potentially toxic chemicals. 

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