Sapp Bros. Travel Plaza's Omaha, Neb., location now offers plug-in power to help save fuel, reduce idling and lower emissions. Sapp Bros. is now one of two truckstops in Nebraska to offer plug-in power to customers.
Shorepower personnel are all smiles at Sapp Bros. From left: Alan Bates, director of marketing, Jeremie Spitzer, director of business development, and Paul Clarke, site development specialist.
Shorepower personnel are all smiles at Sapp Bros. From left: Alan Bates, director of marketing, Jeremie Spitzer, director of business development, and Paul Clarke, site development specialist.


The Sapp Bros. site is one of 50 truckstops planned nationwide to get power pedestals in 2012 through the Shorepower Truckstop Electrification Project, a U.S. Department of Energy program partnering Shorepower Technologies with Cascade Sierra Solutions. CSS administers the program, which also includes rebates for trucking operators to purchase idle-reduction equipment.

Truckers and the public saw how truckstop electrification contributes to a healthier environment at a two-day open house June 12-13 at the Sapp Bros. location on I-80 at Exit 440. In attendance were representatives from Shorepower Technologies, which installed 24 plug-in power pedestals at the site, Cascade Sierra Solutions and industry vendors.

By using 120-volt or 208-volt electricity, truckers can heat or cool their cabs and run appliances such as TV, microwave and refrigerator at a fraction of the cost of idling their vehicles during mandatory rest stops.

"This central location in Omaha is a key stop for trucking companies to take advantage of electrification that we are introducing to a growing number of truckstops nationally," says Alan Bates, Shorepower vice president of marketing. "By using shore power at truckstops to reduce idling, among other steps, trucking fleets can save 60% or more on energy costs."

For energy-conscious fleets, the Sapp Bros. site also offers six 480-volt power pedestals for refrigerated trailer units.

"Truck owners who need a 240-volt electric standby connection can arrange to have access to a power converter at any STEP site that provides 480-volt service," says David Orton, CSS marketing manager. "More than half of the 50 STEP truck stop locations will have the 480-volt service."

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