WINNIPEG -- Manitoba’s capital city recently unveiled a fuelling station specifically designed to supply the municipal fleet with biodiesel.

The WinSmart biodiesel fuelling station in Winnipeg, which will provide the municipal fleet with a blend of 10 percent biodiesel and 90 percent conventional diesel – or B10 biodiesel – is a result of a federal, provincial and municipal partnership.

The biofuelling station is part of a number of integrated green transportation measures that Winnipeg is implementing under WinSmart, which has received funding under Transport Canada's Urban Transportation Showcase Program.

Under the program, Transport Canada is providing this funding to increase the supply and awareness of alternative fuels in Winnipeg.

"This biodiesel project demonstrates our commitment to explore and identify energy-efficient alternatives, and continue reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the City of Winnipeg," stated Mayor Sam Katz. "We are confident that this pilot project will lead to the expanded use of cleaner-burning fuels in our entire fleet of city vehicles."

The Urban Transportation Showcase Program is a $35-million program aimed to demonstrate, evaluate and promote effective strategies to reduce GHG emissions from urban transportation.

Winnipeg was selected in November 2003 as one of eight municipalities to showcase innovative transportation-related technologies. The others are the Greater Toronto Area and Hamilton; Greater Vancouver; Halifax; Quebec City; Montreal and Gatineau; Whitehorse, Yukon; and the Region of Waterloo, Ont.

Winnipeg's WinSmart showcase will receive up to $2.2 million in federal funding. Initiatives include transit priority measures; multimodal transit stations; local transportation demand management programs; efficient use of cars and trucks; active transportation infrastructure; community marketing; and the biodiesel fuelling station.