The City of Kelowna in it's adoption of sustainable transportation practices, ranks in the Top 10 cities in Canada.

In the second annual Smart Transportation Ranking Report, put together by the UBC Sauder School of Business and Appleton Charitable Foundation, Kelowna placed 10th (out of 27 cities). It moved up 4 spots from last year.

The report looks at 17 indicators in four categories - air quality, public policy, transport policy and technology adoption. Kelowna has a green municipal fleet which includes 4 hybrid vehciles and 18 smart cars. It's one of 4 cities to have all it's transit buses running on alternative fuels.

Projects for sustainable transportation in 2009 include the expansion of Rapid Bus BC, a transit exchange in Rutland, the extension of Rails with Trails and 2 off-road cycling projects along the proposed Glenmore Bypass and Gordon Drive extension.

 

With gas prices higher than ever before and this being the busy season for summer travel, it may be a good time to offer tips to save at the pump.

The following tips provided by Ford, are geared towards driving behaviour and it can save you quite a bit. You can increase fuel-efficiency simply by changing your habits.

Ford calls it EcoDriving - because it is eco-nomical and eco-logical.

The tips are listed below:

• Maintain a steady speed; if you pump the accelerator often, more fuel is pumped into the engine. Use cruise control on the highways to maintain speed.
• Relax, because aggressive driving such as accelerating quickly or braking and also speeding can reduce gas mileage and wear out your tires and brakes.
• With newer vehicles there's no need to idle (warm-up the engine) - even in cold temperatures.
• Maintain good tire pressure, this alone can save you 3-4% in fuel.
• Service your vehicle at the recommended times - tune-up the engine, align the wheels, replace air filters
• Remove heavy and unncessary items from your car. This reduces the worl-load on the engine
• Use heating and air-conditioning wisely to reduce the load on the engine
• Have windows closed when travelling at high speeds
• Use the right oil  for your engine - there are good quality, energy conserving EC oils. They have a ECII symbol to indicate their fuel-efficiency.
• Plan your trips to reduce extra, unneeded trips
  

Source: Article titled "Tips to save gas costs"

Ford Motor Company's long-term goals are to focus on developing fuel cells and hydrogen technology.

Ford's HySeries Drive is a battery powered hydrogen fuel cell hybrid electric car that has plug-in capabilities. "The HySeries Drive technology is able to operate using a fuel cell, small gasoline or diesel engine connected to an electric generator to make electricity."

Aside from Ford's concept car, the Ford Airstream Concept, Ford has also unveiled the Ford Edge with Hyseries Drive, which is equiped with a hydrogen storage tank, 336 volt lithium-ion battery pack fuel cell and 2 electric motors. The Ford Edge with Hyseries Drive is the "world’s first drivable fuel cell hybrid electric plug-in that combines an onboard hydrogen fuel cell generator with lithium-ion batteries to deliver more than 41 mpg with zero emissions."

As stated, the new Edge delivers a highway/city rating of 5.7L/100 km (or 41 mpg) with no emissions. For distances less than 80 km (or 50 miles) fuel consumption can be reduced to 3.0L/100 km (or 80 mpg). It can travel at speeds upto 136 km/h (or 85 mph).

The first 40 km is run on stored electricity, then the hydrogen fuel cell allows it to run for another 320 km with no emissions. The HySeries vehicles can be plugged into a normal 110-volt outlet to recharge the battery. The technology is in Ford Motor's Company's long term plans of 2020 and beyond.

Source: Article by Jim Robinson titled "Ford looks at new technologies as it drives to greener future"

Ford is working on its Eco-Boost technology which can provide 20-30% better fuel economy compared to current engines. It doesn't cost as much as hybrids and diesel engines but it enhances economy, reduces emissions and doesn't sacrifice performance.

The first car to incorporate this EcoBoost technology will be the 2009 Lincoln MKS which will then be followed by the Ford Flex. By 2013, Ford plans to have over 500,000 vehicles with the EcoBoost engines.

EcoBoost gets better fuel economy by turbo-charging it's engines and by using direct fuel injection. With direct fuel injection, precise amounts of fuels are injected into the combustion chamber rather than going upstream in to the induction port that happens in conventional engines. Since direct injection results in a cooler, denser charge, there is more power yet less fuel is consumed.

Turbocharging uses waste energy from the exhaust to spin the turbine wheel. The combined systems result in smaller engines with more power. For instance, a 3.5 litre V6 will have the same power as a conventional V8 with 340 horsepower.

When EcoBoost is applied to a 4.6 litre V8, it delivers more torque but reduces CO2 emissions by 15% while improving fuel economy by 2 mpg. When EcoBoost is applied to a 2.3 litre four-cylinder engine, it will get 20% better fuel economy and the same levels of power as a V6.

Source: Article by Jim Robinson titled "Ford looks at new technologies as it drives to greener futur"

I decided to retire my Toro Personal Pace self-propelled gas mower after learning about the emissions that gas mowers produce.

Here's an interesting fact:
"Testing found that operating a typical gasoline mower with a four-cycle engine produced as much [Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons] (PAH) as driving a modern car about 150 km or about 95 miles. This means that unless you drive more than 95 mph, your mower actually produces more pollution per hour than your car!" Not to mention, the concentrated dose of several types of pollutants experienced by the mower operator.

Needless to say I was on the lookout for a zero emissions mower that was battery powered; I didn't want to deal with long cords. I narrowed it down to either a Neuton Battery Powered Mower or a Black & Decker Cordless Mulching Mower. The Black & Decker cordless mower had the added benefit of being an energy star product. The other difference was the cutting path; the Neuton product was only 14 inches while the Black & Decker product cut 19 inches.

Home Depot was having a summer sale and they had recently marked down their Black & Decker cordless mower from $449. They also price matched Walmart and I got the mower for only $386 ! Home Depot also carried the HomeLite 22" cordless mower which was listed at a much lower price of $349 (compared to $449).

Over the weekend I assembled the Black & Decker mower and it was as easy as taking the mower out of the box and unfolding the handle. The mower weighs about 80 lbs which is about 20 lbs less than my other gas mower. It is small and compact and comes with a full 2 year warranty. It's also got a sleek, aerodynamic look.

I read through the instruction manual and noted that it takes approximately 9 hours to fully charge the battery. Black & Decker went as far as to include tips on mulching and maintaining the lawn. By keeping the grass 2.5 to 3 inches and mulching it every time, mowing the lawn becomes a breeze.

Yesterday, I took the mower out on the lawn. My biggest concern was the life of the battery. My back yard is about 1/3 of an acre and that's the maximum size that the mower recommends. I adjusted the height to about 3 inches using their one touch height adjustment system and mowed the lawn in less than an hour!

There are other benefits over the gas powered mower as well. For one, my ear drums didn't take a beating; it was so much quieter. It's also easy to start without the need to do multiple pulls. The cordless mowers are less powerful than the gas mowers but if you maintain your yard it shouldn't be a problem.

I'd recommend the Black & Decker Cordless Mulching Mower if you are thinking of reducing your emissions and going green.

I think I'll retire my edge trimmer next !

Environmental Transport Association looked at over 1300 car models to determine winners and losers

The ETA examined the common car models in Britain for their power, emissions, fuel efficiency and even the amount of noise they make to create a guide to buying the greenest vehicle.

The Green Car of the Year for 2008 is the Toyota Yaris and the least Green Car for 2008 is the Dodge SRT-10 Viper.

The Car Buyer’s Guide has ranked the following cars as the top 10 overall:

1. Toyota Yaris
2. Honda Civic Hybrid
3. Toyota Prius
4. Renault Modus
5. Citroën C1
6. Peugeot 107
7. Toyota Aygo
8. Renault Clio
9. Toyota Auris
10. Suzuki Swift

Toyota has 4 models in the Top 10.

The ETA has ranked the following as the worst cars to drive:

1. Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano
2. Lamborghini Murcielago Model Year 2007
3. Dodge SRT10
4. Ferrari 612 Scaglietti
5. Bentley Motors Arnage (from 2007 model year)
6. Bentley Motors Azure (from 2007 model year)
7. Ferrari F430
8. Ferrari F430 Spider
9. Maserati Coupé
10. Maserati Coupé Gransport

Ferrari has 4 models in the worst cars list.

For more information and the Category Winners visit the Environmental Transport Association website.

TH!NK offers North America sustainable mobility

In partnership with clean-tech investors, RockPort Capital Partners and Kleiner Perkins, Caulfield and Byers, a Norwegian electric vehicle company, TH!NK Global, established TH!NK North America. Together, they plan to bring electric vehicles into a society where gas prices are ridicilously high and environmental concerns are becoming a factor.

TH!NK Global mass-produces highway-capable electric vehicles which has no emissions. TH!NK city is the model that will be pushed into North America and these battery powered cars will be available in 2009.

The cars themselves are made by 95% recyclable materials; the body is made from recyclable plastic and the car has met all US federal motor vehicle safety requirements. It has a top-speed of 100 km/h and can travel 180 km on a single charge. The plan is to sell them for less than $20,000 US.

Source: TH!NK Press Release, Article by Bob Keefe