The drive along Interstate 65 from Gary, Indiana to Mobile, Alabama will be friendlier to biofuel proponents after the completion of a $1.3 million infrastructure project. This project ensures that truckers and families driving biofuel vehicles will be able to stop along I-65 to get refills. The Department of Energy and state clean fuel coalitions have dubbed Interstate 65 “America’s First Biofuels Corridor.”
The impetus for this massive biofuels project was the absence of a single E-85 station on Interstate 65 prior to 2006. The Department of Energy worked with state governments in Tennessee, Alabama, Kentucky and Indiana to map out a highway that would meet the needs of frequent users. This collaboration led to the construction of 31 E-85 and five B-20 stations distributed evenly along the interstate for maximum coverage. The Department of Energy claim that a driver operating with E-85 could get a refill within a quarter tank of his last refill.
Participants in the I-65 corridor project participated in a test drive with one group starting at Gary and another group starting at Mobile. The success of this test drive buoyed hopes that Midwestern states could keep biofuel crops in the region to reduce dependence on foreign oil. While the progress made by the DOE and its state partners on this two-year project is impressive, it raises questions about our commitment to alternative fuels.
Biofuels may seem like a convenient solution to our nation’s long-term energy problems but it is not the best solution. These fuels are messy to refine, create emissions that rival gasoline and deplete crops during a worldwide food crisis. As more and more people hit Interstate 65 with their E-85 cars and trucks, they will create demand for biofuels that may not be possible to meet using all of the region’s farmland.
The frustrating aspect of the I-65 biofuel corridor is that it contradicts the argument by traditionalists that alternative fuel infrastructures are difficult to make. The Department of Energy worked with a dozen different organizations and several state legislatures to create a biofuel-friendly environment on a short timetable. Our country’s future depends on a multi-tiered fuel infrastructure where cars powered by electricity, CNG, biofuels and other energy sources can stay fueled over long expanses. While the scale will be different, the DOE’s commitment to the I-65 corridor should act as a model for a larger change in our transportation infrastructure.
