Alternative Energy Newswire

Filed under: Green Culture, On Two Wheels

How does Charlestonia or Steeltownia sound? Because the whole livability bug notably biting cities such as Portland has gotten bigger via the proliferation of dedicated bikeways in a number of US cities. The latest to join are Pittsburgh, PA and Charleston, SC, Treehugger most happily reports.

Pittsburgh has taken a quarter-mile chunk of “structurally unsound” road that cars used for a shortcut through Schenley Park, blocked it off from car traffic, repaved it, repainted it as two bike lines and even included a pedestrian pathway. The city also added LED lighting for good measure. Meanwhile, Charleston is pulling one vehicle lane of Legare Bridge out of circulation and rededicating it exclusively for bike and pedestrian use.

Granted, many recent reports have come out saying we Americans have driven our way past peak car ownership and that the percentage of adults with drivers’ licenses is at a 30-year low, so this kind of readjustment of who has priority on the roads is to be expected. Until now, the cities that usually lead the lists of smallest percentage of car-ownership are New York City and San Francisco, with San Francisco, Denver and, yes, Portland leading the way when it comes to the largest numbers of biking commuters. So the two-wheeled migration to western Pennsylvania and South Carolina may be a refreshing one, but we doubt it will be the last.

Trendwatch: PA, SC the lastest to convert roads to bike-only area originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Mon, 10 Mar 2014 11:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Hybrid, Sedan, Rolls-Royce, Electric, Luxury

Rolls-Royce is not the first marque you’d think of when it comes to environmentally friendly transportation. Its cars are big – often the size of SUVs – and pack ginormous twelve-cylinder engines displacing over six and a half liters. Those upright Parthenon grilles can’t be very aerodynamic, either. But the way the wind is blowing these days, Goodwood will have to get with the program sooner or later.

It developed an electric version of the Phantom a couple of years ago called the 102EX and showed it to customers around the world. But people weren’t interested, so Rolls-Royce killed the program. Not to be deterred, however, Rolls is now said to be working on a plug-in hybrid that would countermand some of the shortcomings – like range and recharging times – that killed the 102EX.

The technology would apparently be borrowed from parent company BMW which is developing it for the X5 eDrive and allow Rolls-Royce to reduce its carbon footprint and offer a more environmentally friendly mode of transportation to those who don’t want to skimp on the luxury and prestige.

Of course we don’t know at this point whether the powertrain would be shoehorned into the Ghost or the Phantom, but we’d expect it to come in sedan form long before a coupe or convertible are ever considered – assuming, of course, that an SUV doesn’t arrive first.

Rolls-Royce planning plug-in hybrid originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 10 Mar 2014 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Growth in public transit ridership since 1995 has outpaced population and VMT growth. Data: APTA. Click to enlarge.

In 2013, Americans took 10.7 billion trips on public transportation—the highest annual public transit ridership number in 57 years—according to a report released by the American Public Transportation Association (APTA). This was the eighth year in a row that more than 10 billion trips were taken on public transportation systems nationwide. While vehicle miles traveled on roads (VMT) went up 0.3%, public transportation use in 2013 increased by 1.1%.

Since 1995 public transit ridership is up 37.2%, outpacing population growth, which is up 20.3%, and vehicle miles traveled (VMT), which is up 22.7%.

Some of the public transit agencies reporting record ridership system-wide or on specific lines were located in the following cities: Ann Arbor, MI; Cleveland, OH; Denver, CO; Espanola, NM; Flagstaff, AZ; Fort Myers, FL; Indianapolis, IN; Los Angeles, CA; New Orleans, LA; Oakland, CA; Pompano Beach, FL; Riverside, CA; Salt Lake City, UT; San Carlos, CA; Tampa, FL; Yuma, AZ; and New York, NY.

There is a fundamental shift going on in the way we move about our communities. People in record numbers are demanding more public transit services and communities are benefiting with strong economic growth. Access to public transportation matters. Community leaders know that public transportation investment drives community growth and economic revitalization. Another reason behind the ridership increases is the economic recovery in certain areas. When more people are employed, public transportation ridership increases since nearly 60% of the trips taken on public transportation are for work commutes.

—APTA President and CEO Michael Melaniphy

Heavy rail (subways and elevated trains) ridership increased by 2.8% across the country as 8 out of 15 transit systems reported increases. Heavy rail in Miami, FL, saw an increase of 10.6% that was mostly due to increased frequency during peak service. Other heavy rail systems with increases in ridership for 2013 were in the following cities: Los Angeles, CA (4.8%); New York, NY (4.2%); and Cleveland, OH (2.9%).

Nationally, commuter rail ridership increased by 2.1% in 2013 as 20 out of 28 transit systems reported increases. With a new rail line that opened in December 2012, commuter rail in Salt Lake City, UT, saw an increase of 103.3%. The following five commuter rail systems saw double digit increases in 2013: Austin, TX (37.3%); Harrisburg-Philadelphia, PA (33.9%); Anchorage, AK (30.0%); Lewisville, TX (23.0%); Stockton, CA (19.9%); Minneapolis, MN (12.5%); and Portland, OR (10.3%).

Light rail (modern streetcars, trolleys, and heritage trolleys) ridership increased 1.6% in 2013 with 17 out of 27 transit systems reporting increases. Systems that showed double digit increases in 2013 were located in the following cities: New Orleans, LA (28.9%); Denver, CO (14.9%); and San Diego, CA (10.4%). Ridership in the following cities also saw increases in 2013: Seattle, WA – Sound Transit (9.8%); Pittsburgh, PA (7.5%); Salt Lake City, UT (6.8%); Los Angeles, CA (6.0%); San Jose, CA (3.6%); and Philadelphia, PA (3.5%).

Bus ridership increased by 3.8% in cities with a population of below 100,000. Nationally, bus ridership in communities of all sizes remained stable, declining by 0.1%.
Large bus systems with increases were located in the following areas: Washington, DC (3.5%); Houston, TX (3.4%); Cincinnati, OH (3.4%); and Seattle, WA (3.1%).

Demand response (paratransit) ridership increased in 2013 by 0.5%.

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Now that Tesla has announced development of a $5 billion “Gigafactory,” everyone is wondering where it will be built. Well, we just got handed a clue: it’s not California.

Although Tesla has a factory in Fremont, California, headquarters in Palo Alto, and a design studio in Southern California, the Los Angeles Times reported that Tesla eliminated California as a potential location for its Gigafactory on Friday. A spokesman in Gov. Jerry Brown’s administration told the Times that the state presented a proposal to the automaker with several possible sites, but Tesla didn’t bite.

It’s likely that cost and politics are the two reasons why Tesla is looking elsewhere. The prices for land and labor are higher in California than other states, and Tesla may consider it beneficial to be less dependent on California and its regulations and economic outlook (despite sometimes preferential treatment).

So with California out of the picture, which will be the lucky state?

Gov. Rick Perry (apparently an undercover environmental steward) is personally negotiating with EV manufacturer. But Texas will have to change its laws to get the deal. Currently, Tesla is unable to sell its vehicles directly to the public because it has no franchise dealer relationships in the state. Although this negatively affects Tesla sales and servicing, it seems unlikely that Texas will change the law to land the Gigafactory.

“We would not change the law, because the franchise laws of this state protect consumers statewide,” Bill Wolters, the head of the Texas Auto Dealers Association, told CNBC. “We have more dealers in Texas over 75 years old than we have manufacturers over 75 years old. Dealers are eternal in our state.”

If Texas is unwilling to change its franchise laws, Arizona, New Mexico, and Nevada would be happy to get the deal.

According to AZCentral, Scott Smith, the mayor of Mesa, invited the automaker to visit the greater Phoenix region to see firsthand the “outstanding business environment” Arizona offers. The city of Tucson has also made a formal proposal to house the Gigafactory.

“We are the home to the Mars exploratory mission at the University of Arizona and known nationally as the Solar City,” said Mayor Jonathan Rothschild. “I think Tesla will feel right at home in Tucson.”

Tim Chowdry, managing director of Global Equities, said that New Mexico’s culture, economy, demographics, and politics would make the state an “ideal” location. A Tesla-New Mexico deal for the Gigafactory may also make amends for the automaker’s snub seven years ago.

But as Gas 2 previously reported, Nevada seems like the likely location for the Gigafactory. According to the Reno Memo, an official said Tesla representatives visited Reno “a few months ago” to explore sites at the Stead airport and at the Tahoe-Reno Industrial Center. It also helps that Nevada has already passed a law allowing the testing of autonomous vehicles on public roads — a technology Tesla is pursuing.

With California out, and Texas unlikely to change its franchise laws, I’m putting my money on a table in the Silver State.

Source: The L.A. Times | Image: Christopher DeMorro/Important Media

The post Tesla Gigafactory Won’t Be in California; Where Will It Be? appeared first on Gas 2.

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Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Nissan

Nissan is pretty certain that free charging offers in the two largest metropolitan areas in Texas are substantially boosting sales of the Leaf electric vehicle. Heck, one Houston car dealer says Leaf sales have tripled because of the plan, which is run by NRG through its batch of eVgo Freedom Stations. Each of these stations has a fast-charging outlet and a standard Level 2 cord where EV drivers can plug-in without breaking out the wallet.

Here’s how the plan works: NRG is offering a year of free charging for those who buy or lease a Leaf in either the Houston or Dallas-Fort Worth areas. NRG has 17 stations in Houston and another 23 in DFW. Nissan pays NRG a fee for employing the program, and it’s apparently paying off, Nissan’s Brendan Jones told Plug In Cars. The stations are located at retailers such as Walgreens and at gas-station chains. The “No Charge to Charge” program started October 1 and runs through the end of this month. The promotion may be driving sales, but let’s remember that Nissan was touting a rise in Leaf sales numbers before the free charging deal went into effect.

Of course, the fun does eventually end, and folks have to start paying for the juice after that first year. Two options NRG offers are a 12-month unlimited charging plan for $39.95 a month or a year of unlimited one-hour sessions at a Level 2 a cool $59.95. Californians, there’s sadly no word on Nissan or NRG bringing a similar program to the Golden State. Because we know you were wondering that.

Thanks to a year of free charges, Nissan Leaf sees sales increase in Texas originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Mon, 10 Mar 2014 07:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Audi says that its Online traffic light information system, demonstrated in an Audi A6 as part of a technology display at the Consumer Electronics Show in January in Las Vegas, is production ready and could be fitted to every Audi model in the range subject to the necessary government legislation.

Audi Online traffic light information uses in-car internet in a new way via Audi connect to establish a link between the car and the traffic light network via the central traffic computer in each town or city. It quickly assimilates the automated traffic light change sequences in the vicinity, and on the approach to a set of lights the Driver Information System (DIS) located in the central instrument cluster then shows the driver the speed to select in order to pass through the light during a green phase. It also displays a visual aid using red, amber or green icons.

Audi Online traffic light information could reduce CO2 emissions by up to 15%, the company says. Click to enlarge.

If the driver is already waiting at a red light, Audi connect will calculate and count down the time remaining until the next green light is scheduled to appear via a timer on the DIS. The system also interacts with the car’s Start-Stop function to ensure the engine is switched on five seconds before the green phase.

Audi AG calculates that Online traffic light interaction has the potential to reduce CO₂ emissions by up to 15%.

Testing of the system continues in Las Vegas with 50 sets of traffic lights. Testing is also underway in the northern Italian city of Verona, where some 60 traffic lights covering almost the entire city center are involved, and in Berlin, where 25 Audi customers are driving cars fitted with Online traffic information that can link up to a total of 1,000 traffic lights in the city. Audi is currently analyzing market launch in the United States.

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