Advocacy & Safety - I loathe the coming of the electric car.

While looking at the pages of ecogeek.com I noticed alot of buzz was surrounding electric vehicles. I know electric vehicles are theoretically more efficient than internal combustion vehicles, but I fear it will curb interest in bicycling as a mode of transport. We are at a crossroads now. We can either keep building for the car, or we can look towards mixed use transportation. I have been a commited bicycle commuter for almost three years now and have been exposed to our automobile-dominated society long enough to want change. I notice with rising fuel prices there is more of an understanding between car drivers and commuting cyclists. Many people at work will comment about how much money I'm saving, and while this may be the initial spark that it takes to get people interested, I hope it is the hidden benefits that keep people on the saddle. These hidden benifits include solving our nations obesity problem and relieving congestion on arterial roads, as well as stopping sprawl. I hope that new cyclists will keep on cycling, even when some pie in the sky electric vehicle rolls off the production line.

Well stated! What is the point of pain for the United States today? Higher gas prices do not seem to be keeping people out of their cars here in S. California on weekends yet.

It does raise a lot of questions and issues. I wouldn't loathe it, though. It still means (most likely) smaller cars that put less cr*p in the air on the roads we ride. Getting people out of their cars, though. . .? I'm not very optimistic.

Among other questions, though:
1. They are REALLY quiet, pose some bit o' danger.
2. Gas taxes are what build roads, mostly. How will roads be kept in repair?
3. Can their point-source pollution be dealt with?

Personally, I'm looking forward to buying a plug-in hybrid when such is available. And, not incidentally, having rented a Prius, I can assure you that the acceleration puts virtually all gas powered cars to shame!

I love this quote i heard on the radio, " All electric power cars are going to do is switching your gas power car to a coal powered car". But you can switch in the main source of electricity in you area but you will probably find that it isn't all that clean or the cost isn't going to be stable.

I know in my area that there begging people to conserve energy in the summertime, well if people started to buy electric cars in record numbers then we'll have a electricity crisis as the the prices rise so the grid can meet demand.

I love this quote i heard on the radio, " All electric power cars are going to do is switching your gas power car to a coal powered car". But you can switch in the main source of electricity in you area but you will probably find that it isn't all that clean or the cost isn't going to be stable.

I know in my area that there begging people to conserve energy in the summertime, well if people started to buy electric cars in record numbers then we'll have a electricity crisis as the the prices rise so the grid can meet demand.

While this is true, it is still far more efficient to make electric power for the masses then it is to use a gas engine to power a single vehicle. Further if enough electric vehicles are "hooked to the grid," power generation can actually be more even by charging all these cars at night vice simply running cool at night as they do now.

IMO, this issue was settled in the minds of the general public...and hence the policy makers and corporations a long time ago. Vehicles in the form of the current automobile, but powered by alternative energy sources are where the money and effort will go, cycling will continue to be considered mainly as recreational and as a fringe method of transportation. The key factor being the fact that Americans as a whole are too lazy and too afraid of being exposed to the elements to consider a mode of regular transportation that requires physical effort and exposes them to the elements.

I know it's not what a lot of you want to hear, but that's my perception, for what it's worth.

IMO, this issue was settled in the minds of the general public...and hence the policy makers and corporations a long time ago. Vehicles in the form of the current automobile, but powered by alternative energy sources are where the money and effort will go, cycling will continue to be considered mainly as recreational and as a fringe method of transportation. The key factor being the fact that Americans as a whole are too lazy and too afraid of being exposed to the elements to consider a mode of regular transportation that requires physical effort and exposes them to the elements.

I know it's not what a lot of you want to hear, but that's my perception, for what it's worth.

Tend to agree with you on this... just too many folks that can't walk a mile, much less pedal three... heaven forbid.

On the flip side however perhaps younger folks will ride bikes longer past college age and there might be some renaissance of cycling. We can hope.

Tend to agree with you on this... just too many folks that can't walk a mile, much less pedal three... heaven forbid.

On the flip side however perhaps younger folks will ride bikes longer past college age and there might be some renaissance of cycling. We can hope.

Ha, I remember when our kid was 15 and still rode his bike everywhere, even doing centuries with us...now he's 17 and can't think of anything but finally getting his driver's license in a few weeks. He finds every excuse in the book for us to give him a ride to and from work/school rather than taking his bike and even when I make him take his bike he complains about how hard the 5 mile ride is and how he's too tired to do anything else for the rest of the day. I don't have a lot of hope. :(

For a lot of people, you need to completely redesign cities to replace the car.

Frankly it's just one more step towards having them computer controlled, so meh.

Ha, I remember when our kid was 15 and still rode his bike everywhere, even doing centuries with us...now he's 17 and can't think of anything but finally getting his driver's license in a few weeks. He finds every excuse in the book for us to give him a ride to and from work/school rather than taking his bike and even when I make him take his bike he complains about how hard the 5 mile ride is and how he's too tired to do anything else for the rest of the day. I don't have a lot of hope. :(

If you wore that wig when driving your kid would happily bike to work/school.

Ha, I remember when our kid was 15 and still rode his bike everywhere, even doing centuries with us...now he's 17 and can't think of anything but finally getting his driver's license in a few weeks. He finds every excuse in the book for us to give him a ride to and from work/school rather than taking his bike and even when I make him take his bike he complains about how hard the 5 mile ride is and how he's too tired to do anything else for the rest of the day. I don't have a lot of hope. :(
Don't lose hope:p
Your son sounds a lot like me when I first got my license. At 16- 17 driving was very much a status symbol and a bicycle was the antithesis of cool. Now I'm a 19 year old college student and I pretty much ride my bike everywhere. The only time I drive anymore is when I need to lug my guitar/amp around. 150 pounds of equipment is a bit much for me:(

On Earth Day, I saw a television spot for GM that showed their hybrid, electric and upcoming hydrogen-powered cars. Personally, I like the French car that runs on compressed air and can be filled within 3 minutes and, in emergencies, can even self-refuel.

But I share the same sentiments as the OP. No matter what powers the car, the fact that there will still be a million cars on the street is not a pleasing prospect. Motorists will still speed, pass recklessly and dangerously and crowd cyclists unnecessarily. Only now, they'll be environmentally less damaging.

I know ... well if people started to buy electric cars in record numbers then we'll have a electricity crisis as the the prices rise so the grid can meet demand.
No, you don't know. They charge at night, off peak.

No, you don't know. They charge at night, off peak.

Yeah, nobody drives at night....

That would be cool though...if everybody charged their cars at night, riding at night would be even better!

Electric cars don't really solve the problem of fossil fuel dependence until the utilities switch away from fossil fuels. They help the electric utilities flatten out the demand curve if they're charged at night. That's all. They still need tires, upholstery, dashboards, etc. that are made from petrochemicals. Even today's best batteries don't store very much energy per unit mass, so battery vehicles are heavier than the equivalent internal combustion vehicles, and hybrids are heavier still. More mass means less efficiency.

IMHO the greener-than-thous amongst the electric car fans are deluding themselves. They don't solve any ecological problems that I can see. And they sure don't reduce traffic congestion.

Ha, I remember when our kid was 15 and still rode his bike everywhere, even doing centuries with us...now he's 17 and can't think of anything but finally getting his driver's license in a few weeks. He finds every excuse in the book for us to give him a ride to and from work/school rather than taking his bike and even when I make him take his bike he complains about how hard the 5 mile ride is and how he's too tired to do anything else for the rest of the day. I don't have a lot of hope. :(

I was the same at 16... and dropped my bike like a hot potato as soon as I could drive... then a couple years later after the newness wore off (and aided by a girlfriend that was a cyclist) I took up cycling again and have not looked back...

So there is still hope. ;)

Electric cars don't really solve the problem of fossil fuel dependence until the utilities switch away from fossil fuels. They help the electric utilities flatten out the demand curve if they're charged at night. That's all. They still need tires, upholstery, dashboards, etc. that are made from petrochemicals. Even today's best batteries don't store very much energy per unit mass, so battery vehicles are heavier than the equivalent internal combustion vehicles, and hybrids are heavier still. More mass means less efficiency.

IMHO the greener-than-thous amongst the electric car fans are deluding themselves. They don't solve any ecological problems that I can see. And they sure don't reduce traffic congestion.

Solar and wind power do not require fossil fuel... it is only a short while before we realize that we need more electric generation and it has to be green.

Is there anything you all won't whine and complain about? Sure electric cars are not the solution, but they do help reduce our energy consumption, and that is a major step. It sounds like the only solution is to force people to ride bikes, and that is ridiculous.

FWIW, bikes still need tires, upholstery, plastics, unless you plan on riding a completly metal bike, but then how do we get the metal out of the ground? Wake up, people. Whining and complaining isn't doing squat. Support the interim fixes while the long term solutions are being developed.

Yeah, nobody drives at night....

That would be cool though...if everybody charged their cars at night, riding at night would be even better!

Well fewer people drive at night. Heck the reality is that most driving is done during two peak times a day... Most of the time cars sit idle... yet we design them all for the ultimate cross country drive. Most cars carry one person, yet are designed for the average 2.2 kids and adults. Most cars expend most of their energy carrying around the car itself... a person takes no more then a couple HP to move, even at 60MPH. Starting to see the real problem yet?

Is there anything you all won't whine and complain about?

I think I'll whine about your whining about their whining...

For reasons already stated here, I see considerable promise in electric vehicles.

[QUOTE=UnsafeAlpine;6599944]Is there anything you all won't whine and complain about? Sure electric cars are not the solution, but they do help reduce our energy consumption, and that is a major step./QUOTE]

Ummmmm...not really.

It takes just as much energy to drive a 2000 lb gas vehicle 100 miles as it does to drive a 2000 lb electric vehicle 100 miles. Only the fuel source is changing...it may, or may not, be better for the environment, depending on the source of the electricity (and how much gets lost in transmission).

It does raise a lot of questions and issues. I wouldn't loathe it, though. It still means (most likely) smaller cars that put less cr*p in the air on the roads we ride. Getting people out of their cars, though. . .? I'm not very optimistic.

Among other questions, though:
1. They are REALLY quiet, pose some bit o' danger.
2. Gas taxes are what build roads, mostly. How will roads be kept in repair?
3. Can their point-source pollution be dealt with?

Personally, I'm looking forward to buying a plug-in hybrid when such is available. And, not incidentally, having rented a Prius, I can assure you that the acceleration puts virtually all gas powered cars to shame!


-You can always add the ability of making noise
-Gas taxes? That's counter to the typical AnS argument. Gas taxes just go in the general coffers.
-It's a lot easier to control pollution from a single point then from multiples (poorly maintained autos)

I think I'll whine about your whining about their whining...

I'm gonna whine until you all quit whining.

More mass means less efficiency.

Stupidest statement of the thread. Shows a complete lack of understanding.

Is there anything you all won't whine and complain about? Sure electric cars are not the solution, but they do help reduce our energy consumption, and that is a major step.

Ummmmm...not really.

It takes just as much energy to drive a 2000 lb gas vehicle 100 miles as it does to drive a 2000 lb electric vehicle 100 miles. Only the fuel source is changing...it may, or may not, be better for the environment, depending on the source of the electricity (and how much gets lost in transmission).
ICEs are extremely inefficient compared to electric motors in terms of energy waste. LOTS of energy is wasted in the form of heat and unburned fuel, along with the much added friction due to the complexity of a ICE engine/transmission system. Add the fact that part and engine upkeep is much worse on an ICE. The only downfalls you mainly get from electric is battery weight, charge time, and disposal, but not efficiency.

However, we do need to get away from the 50+% electricity from coal system that we use now.

Stupidest statement of the thread. Shows a complete lack of understanding.
No weight weeny here.

No, you don't know. They charge at night, off peak.

Which will BECOME a peak. Electric Heat systems fire up at night in winter.

the electric grid is woefully underprepared for a mass introduction of electric cars. Don't look to wind power for anything, its to unpredictable.

Solar and wind power do not require fossil fuel... it is only a short while before we realize that we need more electric generation and it has to be green.


Solar power, now there is another comically useless energy generation form. it only works in sunlight. Guess whats lacking at night... Sunlight. how bout clouds? That does a number on solar to. Plus there is no way to store the power generated by solar very effectivly. Solar panels are also very expensive to buy and maintain.

ICEs are extremely inefficient compared to electric motors in terms of energy waste. LOTS of energy is wasted in the form of heat and unburned fuel, along with the much added friction due to the complexity of a ICE engine/transmission system. Add the fact that part and engine upkeep is much worse on an ICE. The only downfalls you mainly get from electric is battery weight, charge time, and disposal, but not efficiency.

However, we do need to get away from the 50+% electricity from coal system that we use now.

Tell that to the environuts who don't want new nuclear reactors for power generation.

they (electric cars) will be fueled by electricity (dah).

electricity is mostly made by coal fired plants here in USA (dah x2) ...

nuclear powered electricity generating plants will cost USA even more to remove spent cells (dah x3)!

electric cars have no place in energy equation for usa for me, unless we resolve to use clean, renewable energy producing sources (wind, sun, tidal).

or we could just use what we already have, our bicycles... :-)

tomg

Tidal/Hydroelectric is the only one of the three that isn't as flakey.

Solar = Good only on Sunny Days.
Wind = Windy times only. Texas tried it, and had a blackout when the wind died on them.

Solar power, now there is another comically useless energy generation form. it only works in sunlight. Guess whats lacking at night... Sunlight. how bout clouds? That does a number on solar to. Plus there is no way to store the power generated by solar very effectivly. Solar panels are also very expensive to buy and maintain.

If you have a solar system you'll have a large bank of batteries to store power, unless you're selling all of the excess to the grid. While the systems can be expensive, it's a long term investment. Somebody I work with installed their solar system recently, and I'm getting a lot of interesting info about it.

I don't know if all electric cars are a good answer or not.... but I have read the real cost is the battery replacement that cost several 1000 bucks and has to be done like every 20,000 miles....

I rather see public transportation being used a lot more. Bicycles aren't ever going to be a mainstream way of commuting in the United States.

If you have a solar system you'll have a large bank of batteries to store power, unless you're selling all of the excess to the grid. While the systems can be expensive, it's a long term investment. Somebody I work with installed their solar system recently, and I'm getting a lot of interesting info about it.
Yea.. battaries as big as houses and storing enough power to run 1 home for 5 minutes. Its a pipe dream. Look at a UPS for computers.. They have enough power to run a desktop computer for 5 minutes. and they are 1/3 the size of a car battery. Don't compare it to a laptop which is designed with low power components. Its also a very long payoff. You're not going to generate enough power to run a home for a night, its only a minuet suppemental power system.

Yea.. battaries as big as houses and storing enough power to run 1 home for 5 minutes. Its a pipe dream. Look at a UPS for computers.. They have enough power to run a desktop computer for 5 minutes. and they are 1/3 the size of a car battery. Don't compare it to a laptop which is designed with low power components. Its also a very long payoff. You're not going to generate enough power to run a home for a night, its only a minuet suppemental power system.

Sure solar isn't perfect. Sure it is expensive (at the moment). But have you ever looked around while biking, at the sheer amount of wasted real estate. Imagine if even 50% of the homes and other buildings in the US had solar panels on them. Sure you wouldnt get much benefit at night, and not as much on cloudy days. But ever bit helps.

Same thing with wind power. Look at the wind farms in europe. They have been a success. Again you don't want to bank 100% of your energy on the wind. But when they are moving they are helping to offset the rest of the electrical production.

-D

lowering the demand for power could be a viable option! who really needs electricity at 3 AM?
increase elctrical efficacy/efficiancy, be on the cutting edge., this was what USA was about before.
step-up or fall back...
(my 2 cts!)

Yea.. battaries as big as houses and storing enough power to run 1 home for 5 minutes. Its a pipe dream.

Uh, then how do you think they tuck a battery with enough capacity to run an automobile for ca. 100 miles into the underside of the car? The electrical requirement for an efficient home is even smaller.

I like bikes. More than cars. But I also like cars. Cars are good. Electric cars would be very good. Nothing wrong with saving time, especially when the environmental impact is low.

I understand that you want other people to share your hobby, but it is a bit selfish to hope that a great machine fails just because it isn't what *you* are interested in. Let people want what they want. You cannot wish for them to like what you like any more than they can ask you to have no interest in bikes and love SUVs.

or we could just use what we already have, our bicycles... :-)

tomg

You put out far more C02 when biking than when sitting at home.

Minimize your impact. Never move.

I love how people prattle on about how we're going to prop-up unsustainable car culture by fashioning all manner of new energy sources/delivery systems, to replace good ol' cheap, and easily transportable crude.

Especially when the prattling comes from a system that is drowning in a soupy landfill of consumer/governmental/corporate debt.
Like..... how the 4uck do you plan on paying for this monumental transition?

Sorry folks.
But our time as masters of the universe, is almost over.

Yea.. battaries as big as houses and storing enough power to run 1 home for 5 minutes. Its a pipe dream. Look at a UPS for computers.. They have enough power to run a desktop computer for 5 minutes. and they are 1/3 the size of a car battery. Don't compare it to a laptop which is designed with low power components. Its also a very long payoff. You're not going to generate enough power to run a home for a night, its only a minuet suppemental power system.


You don't really know much about batteries or storage technology, do you?

There are plenty of ways to store energy besides the use of a battery. The simple process of pumping water into a reservoir for later release into generation systems is one example.

The energy equation isn't just about one thing or solution, it's about bringing together a myriad of alternative and having them all contribute to the equation. Solar, thermal, hydro, nuclear, coal, oil, bio, wind. The more generation points, the less dependency on any single source,

^^^^Of course in places where sunlight is abundant (Arizona, New Mexico, so forth) There is not much water. And water is going to be in short supply in the near future anyway.

^^^^Of course in places where sunlight is abundant (Arizona, New Mexico, so forth) There is not much water. And water is going to be in short supply in the near future anyway.

OK set giant disks spinning and draw down that inertial energy later...

Heat up rocks and draw off the heat later, freeze air and draw off energy from the expansion of thawing air later.

The whole idea is to created potential energy... that can be released at a later time... even electric cars can be used as energy storage systems... if they can be plugged into the net when not being used. They are portable batteries.

Sure, in the long run it would be nice if everyone went to bikes and walked for most of their transportation needs, but since we have built our cities on the pretense of unlimited personal transportation... there's some issue that have to be worked out first.

It takes just as much energy to drive a 2000 lb gas vehicle 100 miles as it does to drive a 2000 lb electric vehicle 100 miles.
Yes, but AFAIK the chemical engineers haven't yet figured out how to fashion a form of regenerative braking that will add gasoline to a tank ;-)

This form of energy efficiency is generally only avaliable to vehicles driven by electricity. While your point is a valid one, it really is more than just an energy source issue as (so far) only that 2000lb electric car can recoup some amount of its kinetic energy and store it somewhere, like a battery. Once recovered, the energy can then be used to accelerate the vehicle. Regular cars dissipate all that energy as heat, a real waste if ever there was one.

Now, for the lack of noise generated by an electric car the solution is simple: just wait for the next 'in' thing to be creating sounds for our electric cars, like the plethora of ringtones for mobile phones. Maybe they'll call them 'motorcons' or something, but noise is noise, and when it comes to safety, any noise is good noise. Imagine the possibilities; now imagine the horror.

Still, some sort of sound-generating device will have to be mandated once enough people are killed by the perilous silence.

Ha, I remember when our kid was 15 and still rode his bike everywhere, even doing centuries with us...now he's 17 and can't think of anything but finally getting his driver's license in a few weeks. He finds every excuse in the book for us to give him a ride to and from work/school rather than taking his bike and even when I make him take his bike he complains about how hard the 5 mile ride is and how he's too tired to do anything else for the rest of the day. I don't have a lot of hope. :(

Don't loose hope. I agree with the others that getting a drivers license is a big deal. It is one of the first big steps that teens see as their migration to becoming a full adult. With gas quickly approaching $4.00 per gallon, and minimum wage around $7.00 per hour. Wait till he has to start putting gas in the car for his "fun" driving around with friends. I think he'll quickly find out that spending $70 a week to put gas in a car and then having to work 10 hours in the weekend just to earn that gets old quick! When I had a summer jub as a teen it was working for the local recreation department. I was able to ride my bike to either the school pools or the lake at which I was a swimming instructor and lifeguard. My parents did NOT allow me to get my own car. Back then gas was pretty cheap, but insurance never was so they didn't want me to use 100% of my earnings just to pay for insurance and a car payment. They did however let me use one of their cars whenever I needed it. I also knew that it was a privalege that could easily be revoked if I did something stupid. I was a reasonably cautious kid, but I do think that knowing that I could lose car privelages did help keep me focused on good driving.

I had not used my bike much the last decade, but a little over a year ago I took a new job that is within 5 miles of my house. Since last April I have been actively commuting to work and since the Fall pretty much no amount of weather other than a major snow storm or severe wind (45 MPH +) will keep me from riding. Besides saving a bundle of money by not having to put gas in my car, I also was able to save an additional $100 (nearly 15%) on my car insurance by not driving to work and driving far fewer miles yearly.

Happy riding,
André

I love this quote i heard on the radio, " All electric power cars are going to do is switching your gas power car to a coal powered car". But you can switch in the main source of electricity in you area but you will probably find that it isn't all that clean or the cost isn't going to be stable.

I know in my area that there begging people to conserve energy in the summertime, well if people started to buy electric cars in record numbers then we'll have a electricity crisis as the the prices rise so the grid can meet demand.

I don't think you have to worry about a surge. Fully electric cars aren't super cheap (they cost a bit more than equivalent gas cars so far). And people replace their cars every 5-10 years.

The thing is, we can fix our power plants and clean their emissions easier than we can our cars. We attached catalytic converters to our cars to try and clean car emissions but they have a big problem: They take around 10 minutes to start being effective.

The second thing is that we can swap out power plants faster than cars. We don't have to convince your average american to change their power plant, they don't have much say ;). But convincing them not to buy a 12mph SUV (okay, few are that bad) is difficult, even with $3.50 a gallon gas.

The third item is solar power: You can buy photovoltaic cells, have them installed on your roof, and charge your car with it. It makes a lot more sense than solar farms in the distance, there's no transmission cost, you control the power, there's no middle man to pay for the power.

Unfortunately, the solar panels cost about what your new electric car cost. I'm not sure if high demand would pull that down or not. Hopefully high demand will drop the price on electric cars.

The fourth item is size: You can make electric cars small. Making gas cars small is sort of a waste.


I'd like to see people give power assisted bikes a try. If they think they can't ride a regular bike they're right: They'll need more will power than that to power up a hill! But maybe an assisted bike will help them get in good enough shape to ride a regular bike, and even if they keep riding it it's about as efficient as they can get on a motorized vehicle! Unfortunately, these are still really expensive. I doubt many people would save any money riding them.

Electric cars are coming? Why didn't anyone send me the memo???




It takes just as much energy to drive a 2000 lb gas vehicle 100 miles as it does to drive a 2000 lb electric vehicle 100 miles. Only the fuel source is changing...it may, or may not, be better for the environment, depending on the source of the electricity (and how much gets lost in transmission).

As many pointed out, - not really. Maximum efficency of any heat engine is that of Carnot cycle:
n=1-(Tmin/Tmax)
n - efficiency.
Tmin - minimal temperature of the cycle, that of exhaust in case of cars/that of water in cooling tower for powerplant.
Tmax, - maximal temperature, (ignited mix in the pistons/steam just before the turbine.)

So, to make engine more efficient you may
1) "Carnotize" its cycle (adds bulk for lots of technical reasons. Think diesel vs gas engine)
2) Raise Tmax, - As for now limited mostly by parts' ability to withstand heat/ for extended periods of time. Somewhat easier to solve with turbines.
3) Lower Tmin, - MUCH easier in stationary setup. Limited by the ambient temperature in the area.

So, well-designed powerplant needs less fuel per kW/h of energy generated than equivalent number of cars. Efficiency of electric engine is very high, at least in low 90%s, and is less dependent on its RPM. So, while its indeed isn't MUCH more economical/green, it isn't all that worthless either.

Uh, then how do you think they tuck a battery with enough capacity to run an automobile for ca. 100 miles into the underside of the car? The electrical requirement for an efficient home is even smaller.

No its not. its far greater. Heaters, Driers, Washing Machines, Lights, Fans, Radios, TVs, Microwaves, Stoves, Condensors(AirCon unit), Water Heaters, Computers, etc. None of these things are nearly as efficent as those things installed and designed for an electric car. they also have a bank of battaries installed using DC power within the car, you have an incredible powerloss when converting to AC power. Which is why the UPS units for computers are so lousy. Ever wonder why you can by a UPS for a house? The battery technology is not capable of handling it. Hence a Generator is what can be bought, they generate AC power on the fly. You can't store AC power. only DC can be stored in a battery. This is also why Laptops have greater runtime beyond the more efficent parts, their battery is tied directly into the power system. power is converted from AC to DC by the powerbrick, and then passed into the laptop.

There was a very interesting Nova on PBS last week that looked at the future of the Car. It was being hosted by the "Car Guys." Here are some of the main items that stick out:

- From the 1970's to the 1980's car efficiency just about doubled. This was in large part as a reponse to the car crisis from the 1970's. This great reduction is fuel economy helped reduce fuel demand, and it therefore led to cheaper fuel. From the 1980's till today fuel economy has remained flat. Performance is up dramatically and tail pipe emissions are MUCH lower per gallon of fuel burned, but cars have gained quite a bit of weight and size.

- The US is still suffering from drivers that continue to driver further each year. This is driving our ever increasing demand for fuel. This along with other countries such as China and India are driving up world wide fuel demand, which then increases fuel cost.

- Fuel derived from corn or other crops tends to have nearly no energy bennefit, but does drive up food costs dramatically, therefore it is a waiste. The current exceptions appears to be sugar cane in Brazil. This is more than three times as efficient than producing fuel from corn.

- Many groups are working on making fuel (Ethanol) from the corn by-products like the stalks. This has a great deal of potential as you would be using materials that are currently geing unused. There is still a lot of work to be done to make this cost effective.

- Car could be much more effient if their weighed a lot less. The Rocky Mountain Institue for instance is developing a mid size car from carbon fiber that would be very effient, yet still be practical. They know that current carbon fiber production cars are very high so they are working on finding ways to use machines to dramatically reduce production costs. They realize that a car the size of the Smart car will NOT be a solution for most people. The car needs to be practical, efficient AND safe for anyone to give it serious consideration.

- Plug-in hybrids may be able to be a good solution for a lot of people. Due to the fact that less than 1% of the energy in gasoline actually ends up moving the car, gasoline is not the most efficient method of providing energy. An electric motor can be about 85% efficient. Therefore even though an electric car still needs to get energy, there is still an energy efficiency gain by using the grid for a slow overnight charge. By adding a SMALL combustion engine to the car you can then extend the driving range to 600 miles. This makes the car functional for a wide range of uses. Full electric cars with 40 to 80 miles of range just are not practical for most families. If you buy your local power from clean sources (mine is 85% Wind and 15% small hydro) then in theory you have very low emissions. The more people buy clean power the easier it is for companies to get funding to build more Wind or other green power sources.

- Battery power still needs to make some major improvements in energy density and longevity for the "Big 3" to seriously consider moving further into the electric/plug-hybrid car market.


Now back to cycling:

By riding my bike to work and minimizing the use of my car in general I am doing my bit to help reduce our fuel needs. If large numbers citizens stopped driving their cars to work and used their bikes instead we could off set our ever increasing energy demand and thereby help reduce fuel cost. Therefore motorists should be PAYING us to ride our bikes to work:D Isn't that how energy credits should work?:beer:


Happy riding,
André