Truck stop operator plans 100 natural-gas filling stations in US

Truck stop operator plans 100 natural-gas filling stations in US

By JAMISON COCKLIN

YOUNGSTOWN

TravelCenters of America LLC, which operates full-service truck stops and travel plazas in 41 states, plans to construct 100 liquefied natural-gas filling stations across the country.

Going forward, the Westlake-based company anticipates a rise in demand for the fuel among the long-haul trucking industry.

Currently, Ohio has only one LNG filling station, opened in February in Seville, which is west of Akron.

That station was funded in part by a grant from Clean Fuels Ohio, a statewide nonprofit organization. Its opening was met with fanfare because trucks outfitted with LNG fuel tanks have few options for refueling, due to a lack of filling stations both inside and outside Ohio.

“No locations have been identified yet” for the 100 stations, said Tom Liutkus, a spokesman with TravelCenters of America, which operates a plaza at Interstate 80 and state Route 46 in Austintown.

Read the full story Monday in The Vindicator and on Vindy.com.