Welcome Back Driving Change Network Members!
Hello again everyone, I’m back with our second issue of the Driving Change Network Newsletter. We’ve got contest winners, great member responses, interesting new newsbytes, and a surprising view of how hybrid technology could work to improve public health. Hope you enjoy this edition, and I’ll be coming back to you soon with even more interactive features.
Keep on drivin’,
Scott Nathanson
UCS National Field Organizer &
HybridCenter.org Administrator
In this issue:
I’m pleased to announce that Gayle Shisler - Doylestown, PA won a very close vote and is the “Who’s Got Hybrids?” Owner of the Month. Thanks to everyone who took the time to cast their vote. Gayle was excited to hear she won, and her solar powered auto vent is on the way. She had some additional comments about life in her Generation 1 Prius she wanted to share with fellow DCN members:
 "I have 2 kids--ages 15 and 20. My 15-year-old can't wait to have me pass my car down to her when I replace it with a new hybrid, and my 20-year-old son plans to buy a hybrid of his own as soon as he can. We've used the car for family camping vacations with four passengers & all the camping gear & had no trouble fitting everything. It's roomier than it looks--even my 2001 model!"
Congrats Gayle, and thanks!
 If you didn’t know already by our self-congratulatory stamp on HybridCenter, the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences honored us with the Webby Award for best Guides/Ratings/Reviews.
Obviously, winning awards is not why we do what we do, but I must admit it's pretty cool when you get a pat on the head like this. The Webby Awards is a very prestigious competition, so this is a big deal. In an “I want to thank the Academy…” kind of way, I would like to thank the hundreds of people who sent in testimonials to “Who’s Got Hybrids?”. Your submissions have helped round out our resource into something worthy of recognition. Thank you!
Last month, I posted a response to a DCN member question about hybrids and fuel economy. Another DCN member, Michelle Camilli from Harrisburg, PA wrote in an additional comment that I thought I should share with everyone:
“I just wanted to comment on Hybrid Fuel Economy Blues. Many people we know personally aren't being converted to driving hybrids because they are told you don't get as good mpg as the estimates, and others who have hybrids have been disappointed (we were at first).
It is true that our 2004 Prius gets better mileage in warmer weather. But the other thing that we need to educate folks about is changing their driving habits! We carefully watch our mileage average on the screen (it's like a game to see if we can keep it up). This really helped me change the way I drive. Too many people drive full speed, then lean heavy on the brakes for stops, turns and curves. You have to be light on the accelerator. The trick is to use downhills to your advantage and coast into stops and turns (i.e. take your foot off the accelerator ahead of time rather than leaning on the brake, then accelerating heavily again). Steady, even driving improves your mileage.
On my last tank of gas, I averaged 52 mpg, and we live in a hilly area. Now that the weather's cooler for a few days, we're getting about 48. We drive a combination of city and highway. Although I know the technology exists for cars to get 100 mpg, I'm really happy with 48 compared to any other vehicle choices we have, especially when it comes to buying gas.”
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Of plugins and Prii: A correction from last month’s newsletter: I spoke with my contacts at Toyota and they were adamant that the Generation 3 Prius coming out in 2008 will not be a plugin. They neither confirmed nor denied the rumors that they have made improvements that will allow this Prius to get between 70-90 miles per gallon. If you’re looking for the plugin Prius, read the HybridBlog posting from UCS vehicles analyst Don MacKenzie about his test spin in a converted plugin. And while most automakers remain tepid on commercial applications for plugin technology, Ford seems to be taking a closer look at the potential for a plugin Escape Hybrid. See the article “Ford “keenly” looking at plugin Escape Hybrid” in our Hybrid News section.
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Hyundai delays hybrids: The exciting news that the Hyundai Accent/Kia Rio hybrids would be in the U.S. by year’s end, bringing a new, lower-cost player into the hybrid market, is no longer the case, for now. Hyundai announced that the strength of the Korean won has forced them to reconsider the short-term introduction of hybrids in the U.S. and are now planning to delay introduction until at least the 2009 model year. More news on this can be found in the Hybrid News section and more on the state of the hybrid market can be found on the Hybrid Timeline.
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Honda sees big opportunity in small hybrids: This September, Honda will end production of the Honda Insight, the first hybrid sold in the United States. In its place, Honda will introduce a new hybrid by 2009 that the company hopes will challenge Toyota’s hybrid market dominance. Honda confirms that the new hybrid will be smaller and cheaper than the current Honda Civic Hybrid but not a hybrid version of the new Fit subcompact (though there is still rumor that they may put the Insight engine into the Fit and do a hybrid version of that, too). Honda officials also feel that hybrid technology is best for smaller cars, most likely because they’ve been burned by their “muscle” Accord hybrid (and it looks like they’re going to cut way back on Accord hybrid production now, too). Looks like their new V6 “clean diesel” engine will be the ticket they try to ride for more fuel-efficient larger vehicles. This is in marked contrast to the GM/BMW/Daimler/Chrysler “dual mode” hybrid application that is banking on hybrid technology working (or at least, selling) best with larger vehicles. More articles on Honda can be found in the Hybrid News section.
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States continue to consider hybrid incentives while automakers try to make them subsidies: I just updated the Hybrid Incentive section of the hybridcenter website with a number of changes to the status of hybrid incentive legislation. Looks like Tennessee is on its way to reducing the sales tax for hybrids, and looking into an HOV exemption. Hawaii introduced their first incentives bill—a tax credit of $1,500 on a new or used hybrid (the used tax credit is the first I’ve ever seen). Automakers, however, are clamoring to make federal advanced vehicle incentives into personal subsidies for their companies rather than incentives to push the fuel-efficient playing field. Read my blog about it here.
As you might know, this week UCS unveiled its School Bus Pollution Report Card 2006 report. Every day, millions of America's kids ride aging school buses that emit unhealthy diesel exhaust. Diesel pollution on our nation’s half-million school buses is a major issue. Here are some of the key results:
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On average, a school bus emits two times more pollution per mile than a big rig (tractor trailer).
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No state received an "A" grade for emissions performance.
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School bus soot has been reduced about 2 percent through federal, state, and local cleanup efforts.
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Many states are ignoring the problem of school bus pollution. Over half the states have small or no cleanup programs.
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All states need additional funding for school bus cleanup.
So why am I talking about this report in the Driving Change Network newsletter? Because hybrid technology may very well be part of the answer. Here's the overview that we did for our CleanSchoolBus.org Alliance Alert.
Issue Overview: Hybrid School Buses
Hybrid technology is becoming an increasingly vibrant segment in the transit bus industry. As noted in the UCS HybridCenter.org watchdog on this issue, transit departments from all over the nation are looking at this technology for both emissions and fuel expenditure reductions.
From an ideal perspective, hybrid technologies could give two distinct advantages for school bus use. First and most simple would be the reduction of the use of fuel. With the Energy Information Administration projecting sustained high oil prices, the increased up front costs of a hybrid school bus is far easier to justify (a hybrid transit bus can cost up to $200,000 more than a typical diesel bus). Also, given that school buses are often involved in city transit, and idle frequently for loading and unloading of students, the capacity of full hybrid technology to turn off its gasoline (or diesel) engine while at a stoplight or idling in front of a school could represent a major decrease in both in-cabin and tailpipe emissions at the most sensitive times for children's health.
Recent tests confirm that hybrid transit buses can save fuel, but not all buses achieve their full potential. Orion VII series-hybrid buses operated by New York City Transit (NYCT) on the city's most severe duty cycles achieved up to 45 percent better fuel economy than diesel buses and 100 percent improvement compared to comparable natural gas buses on an energy-equivalent basis, according to the results of a study released by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). The Connecticut Department of Transportation, on the other hand, performed in-use testing that shows their hybrid buses netting only a 10 percent improvement in fuel economy relative to a comparable conventional diesel bus.
Hybrid technologies have the potential to reduce soot emissions, but again, not all buses are optimized to reduce soot. In fact, a recent study by the University of Connecticut found no decrease in particulate emissions from two hybrid buses compared with two conventional diesel buses in over-the-road tests.
According to a report from WomanMotorist.com, IC Corporation, North America's largest school bus manufacturer, working with hybrid system manufacturer, Enova Systems, Inc., plans to introduce the nation's first hybrid school bus in regular service this spring. As a point of history, in the early 2000s, a consortium comprising of EVermont, NAVC, Solectria Corp. and Bluebird Corp. did convert a Bluebird school bus into a hybrid electric one. Testing showed substantial reduction in fuel usage and emissions compared to a comparable diesel-powered school bus.
The report also notes that The Hybrid Electric School Bus (HESB) project managed by Advanced Energy in North Carolina recently received funding from the State Technologies Advancement Collaborative that could put hybrid electric school buses on the road in two years. The funding will be used to help purchase 20 hybrid electric school buses that will be put in operation in eleven states around the country to determine their feasibility under a variety of operating conditions.
Given the specific functions of a school bus, it will be interesting to monitor the development of hybrid school bus technology and see whether the applications and benefits merit the fiscal investment needed.
More coming soon, including the next DCN Rapid Response Action, and a new contest that ANY DCN member could win, so stay tuned!
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