When you're running a taxi company, fuel is one of the major expenses, and there is no way around it. Or is there? Bryan Gabbard of Chico, California, figured out a way to cut this major expense out of the equation by creating Ecocab, a taxi service that uses modified Mercedes-Benz diesels.
The cars are converted to run on used vegetable oil that Gabbard acquires from various restaurants around town. Chico is a small college town, so there are plenty of places to eat and drink-good for picking up fares and finding waste in the form of used oil to fuel his MBZs. Most restaurants have to pay for the disposal of used oil, so many of them are more than ready to give it away when Gabbard comes around. He figures he gets about 45 free gallons a week from various restaurants, which at today's diesel prices saves him more than $500 a month in fuel.
Ecocab is limited to two cabs: one turbo and one nonturbo. Both are reliable modes of transportation, and the two-car fleet offers plenty of room for the five or six people who may be piling in.
Running an "environmentally friendly taxi service" has also generated fringe benefits. Some students will only use Gabbard's cabs for getting home, even if it means a long wait. Some people have told Gabbard, "That's OK, I'll just walk," after hearing that he would be unavailable for a quick pickup. Whoever uttered the phrase, "There's no such thing as a free lunch," may be right, but the oil used to cook that lunch is fueling Gabbard's clean company.
 A coolant-assisted fuel-heating...  A coolant-assisted fuel-heating system with an extremely large filter is needed because the cab runs almost exclusively on used vegetable oil. |  Because the temperature can...  Because the temperature can drop below freezing in the winter, a secondary electric fuel heater is also used to keep the vegetable oil from solidifying. |  Accidents are an ever-present...  Accidents are an ever-present danger in the life of a cab driver, so the Mercedes has this helpful license-plate holder just in case. |
 The worst-case scenario for...  The worst-case scenario for any cab driver is getting stuck. Ecocab's owner, Bryan Gabbard, found that if a filter clogs and the vehicle stops, he can use this electric inline fuel pump to push gunk through the filter and keep the cab on the road for the rest of the day. |  This particular cab is a 240D...  This particular cab is a 240D Mercedes-Benz that was picked up for $1,900. So far, it has provided six months of trouble-free service and only stopped once when it was 20 degrees F. Gabbard also runs a second Mercedes that's a nonturbo model. |  The interior is stock Mercedes...  The interior is stock Mercedes for the sake of cost and practicality; taking college students home can be hard on the interior. Nobody has lost his or her lunch in this cab yet, which Gabbard considers just short of a miracle. |
 Gabbard recycles everything...  Gabbard recycles everything he can at Ecocab. The buckets used to catch the strained diesel are pickle buckets from restaurants, and many of the oil containers are reused to dispose of grease and oil particles. |  These filters and strainers...  These filters and strainers are used to separate all the particles and nasty parts of the used oil. |  Despite having approximately...  Despite having approximately 70,000 residents, Chico, California, has the third-largest municipal park in the United States-a perfect place for an eco-friendly cab service. |