The California DMV has apparently changed its mind as regards self-driving vehicle testing without human drivers, following the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s announcement that the computers inside self-driving vehicles could be considered “drivers.”
Bike paths: The Netherlands is covered with them, connecting more or less every destination a person might wish to go to and greatly increasing the convenience of cycling as a sustainable mode of transport. In the densely populated country, where space is scarce, a consortium of companies and research labs called Solaroad is endeavoring to make those cycle lanes reduce carbon emissions in yet another way: by having them to generate solar electricity.
Yes, Donald Trump’s so-called “presidency” is about much more than oil & gas. Fox News, Rush Limbaugh, & other hyper-racist faux news sources have filled Trump (“Don the Con,” as some people call him … as I’ve heard some people say) with a tremendous amount of crazy-person hate for “others.” I don’t have to describe who those “others” are, I hope, but it is a wonder that Don the Con is so keen to have dark skin despite being so seemingly scared of dark-skinned people.
As a couple of our writers have highlighted this week, there may be a war brewing between California and the US Environmental Protection Agency. If that seems strange to you (knowing that California is super green and the EPA is all about keeping our world green), note that the United States under Donald J. Trump has a dude running the EPA who basically wants to see the EPA destroyed — so, yes, we are living in backwards land at the moment.
On Tuesday, March 7th, the Trump administration will reverse the Obama administration’s Final Determination requiring automakers meet an average 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025, according to Inside EPA.
An alliance of manufacturers had urged protection for fuel inefficiency in a letter to Trump EPA administrator Scott Pruitt in February, and the industry request is one of hundreds of industry-requested rollbacks in Obama rules that are now on the chopping block, according to the New York Times.
We broke the news last April of BYD becoming the top-selling plug-in vehicle brand in the world by volume (which it still is) and subsequently moving into the electric truck category. Now, the company is working to expand its Lancaster, California, plant in support of increasing demand for electrified BYD trucks.
Lancaster, California, is located northeast of Los Angeles near Edwards Air Force Base. It lies at the edge of the Mojave Desert, where abundant sunshine is the order of the day. The city has been a leader in clean, renewable energy since 2011 and has been requiring builders to install solar panels on all new homes since 2014. Its policies have served as a model for other California communities, including Sebastopol, Santa Monica, and San Francisco. Now, the city seeks to raise the bar by requiring each new home to have a rooftop solar system large enough to meet its full energy needs.
A new bill filed in the California legislature would move the timetable forward for renewable energy forward by several years to 50% by 2025 and 100% by 2045. Both targets are among the most ambitious in the country.
Earlier today, EVgo and ABB unveiled the first “High-Power” fast charger for EVs in the US in Fremont, California. Fremont is well known in EV circles as the home to Tesla and as such, is quickly becoming the epicenter of EV activity, as evidenced by this installation.
A promising energy efficiency program could get closer to reaching its massive potential after a federal policy tweak that tempers lenders’ concerns to allow more homeowners to cash in.
