Alberta government warms to hybrid vehicles

The purchase of fuel-efficient hybrid vehicles is under consideration for the provincial fleet.

Alberta's government was one of the firstto buycompact Smart cars, and it might be time to buy hybrids too, said Lloyd Snelgrove, the treasury board president and minister for Service Alberta.

The federal budget includes a rebate of up to $2,000 for buying fuel-efficient vehicles, and a levy of up to $4,000 on gas-guzzling vehicles like SUVs and Hummers, making green cars even more appealing, he said.

"I'd love to see where the other provinces are and then make sure that we're just ahead of them," he said.

Alberta hasalmost 2,000 minivans and pickup trucks in the government fleet.

The British Columbia government has been adding hybrid vehicles to its fleet for more than two years. Officials inB.C. hope that hybrid vehicles will make up 30 per cent of its fleet by next year.