Clean Transportation: Driven by Demand

October 23, 2005 – Vol.10 No.31

CLEAN TRANSPORTATION: DRIVEN BY DEMAND.

When the automobile, truck and bus revolution began in the early 20th century it was driven by consumers and businesses recognizing that a motorized vehicle was an appealing alternative to horse-drawn carriages.

Governments responded to the phenomenon by building roads and bridges which, in turn, helped the vehicle industry grow rapidly. A nice, clean road surface made traveling by car and truck faster, safer and more comfortable.

The vehicle industry responded to the demand for cars and trucks by continually marketing ever more attractive vehicles.

Even today while manufacturers do the best they can (with considerable success) to control vehicle buying habits through advertising and marketing, at the end of the day consumers rule the roads when choosing vehicles. Now, the roads seem to lead to demand for more fuel-efficient vehicles.

No-longer cheap gas, concern for our nation’s security, and concern over pollution and global warming are driving interest from consumers, as well as organizations like bus transit companies, in fuel-efficient hybrid technologies.

For instance New York City Transit and the Metropolitan Transit Authority of New York (MTA) have together recently ordered 500 diesel hybrid electric buses from DaimlerChrysler’s bus brand Orion.

The order, the largest in hybrid bus history, is the third by the transit companies. Previous orders were for 200 units and 125 units respectively. Orion has delivered 300 hybrid buses for revenue service worldwide and now has 700 more on the order books.

Hybrids, while still very, very, early in the growth stage, aren’t likely to be the technological end of clean, efficient, green, vehicle development.

With more public awareness, plug-in hybrid electric (PHEV) technology could gather strength and become mainstream.

Then, as consumers and businesses get accustomed to plugging in their hybrid vehicles, at the same time as battery technology is improving, the petrol-fueled motor could disappear and vehicles could become all-electric, battery powered.

(Hydrogen fuel cells and the hydrogen economy - at least at this stage of development - need government spending for infrastructure. Biofuels - ethanol, bioethanol, biodiesel - would make hybrids and plug-in hybrids even more appealing in terms of energy independence. Biofuels too could be increasingly popular in areas where electric or hybrid technologies are difficult to adapt - think marine, aviation, trucking and industrial applications.)

Interest in pure plug-in electric vehicles has never waned, but has been sidelined for years while attention has been focused on fuel cells and hybrids. Some manufacturers have kept the plug-in-to-recharge vehicle idea moving forward.

Azure Dynamics, a Toronto, Ontario-based builder of hybrid and electric vehicle technologies, has announced it has sold two new all-electric Azure CitiVans to the New York Power Authority (NYPA) which has delivered them to the United States Postal Service (USPS) Flushing Post Office in Queens, New York.

Together, NYPA has provided funding for 30 CitiVans already in service at post offices in New York. The vans, used for delivery of parcels between post offices, have a range of 40 miles and top speed of 60 miles per hour.

Electrovaya, also of Toronto, Ontario, has announced that an electric car prototype has been launched in Norway. The car is powered by Electrovaya’s SuperPolymer (R) Lithium-Ion battery.

The prototype vehicle being tested by Miljobil Grenland AS is the Maya 100, a compact SUV which Electrovaya claims will go 230 miles between chargings. Miljobil Grenland, a distant division of oil, energy, and light metal company Norsk Hydro, is a fleet operator and marketer of zero emission vehicles in Norway.

Visit Orion Bus at http://www.orionbus.com/ , Azure Dynamics at http://www.azuredynamics.com/ , Electrovaya at http://www.electrovaya.com/ and Miljobil Grenland http://www.miljobil.no/english/index.html