Chattanooga Joins Next Gen Fuels Research
April 5, 2007

Efforts to attract an automobile manufacturer at Enterprise South may have strengthened today.

Congressman Zach Wamp says a million dollars in federal funds will aid UTC in developing new transportation technologies.

The university will use about 10% of the money to purchase the old TVA test track.  The rest will set-up a program to research intelligent public transportation and next generation fuels.  Congressman Wamp says "over the next 25 years, our country should move away from gasoline and toward hydrogen, well what are the technologies that get us there?  Part of its hybrids, part is alternative fuels.  What's the bridge?  We want some of that research to be done right here in Chattanooga."

Wamp hopes results from this research will lead to Tennessee's first hydrogen fuel station in Chattanooga.  He says the city's strong manufacturing base could also encourage companies to make products here.