Get Energy Smart! NOW!

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Department of Transportation (DOT) today released proposed rules for implementating the increase in CAFE standards, beyond the Congressional mandate, as announced this past May. In short, this deal between the Obama Administration and the auto industry accelerates the improvement in light vehicle fuel efficiency across the fleet average (the [...]

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Here is a guest post from the passionate citisven advocating that we tie our laces and walk the walk.
Yup, you read that right. Time to strap on your preferred footwear, turn off the intertubes, and give those rusty bones a fair shake. ‘Cause you know what they say on gravity-rich planet Earth: These boots are [...]

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The strong success of the CARS Program (WIN on economic stimulus, with wins environmentally, energy security, and highway safety) have led to consideration of what to do next. Last week, Senators Senator Bingaman, Snowe, Kerry, and Lugar introduced S. 1620, Efficient Vehicle Leadership Act of 2009. This act would set up a feebate [...]

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This is a question that came into my inbox amid an exchange about the CARS Program:
Is it worth $2000 to the country to increase the MPG of one vehicle by say 10 mpg?
Of course, that is a stove piped question (and somewhat out of context one as that increased MPG, by the way, cost $4.5k [...]

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While the Cash for Clunkers (CARS Program) should be extended, we have to be clear here: this is an economic stimulus and jobs program which happens to have some energy security and environmental benefits.  Yet, the Obama Administration (Office of Management and Budget?) was the power behind the scenes in seeing that the funding stream [...]

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Putting fuel efficiency feedback systems on the dashboard of every American automobile (both existing and new) could well be one of the most cost effective tools for quick reduction in America’s oil dependency and, as well, to improve traffic safety (and reduce) fatalities.   These feedback systems can be as ’simple’ as solely providing real-time miles [...]

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Congress has approved and sent to President Obama, as part of the Supplemental, a $1 billion (down-payment on a) Cash-for-Clunkers bill. As structured, this bill is a clunker that will do a poor job at achieving any (and, well, all) of the legitimate objectives of such legislation:

Stimulate economic activity
Improve traffic / highway safety
Help the [...]

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Amid the supplemental appropriations bill (warning, 144 page pdf), currently awaiting vote after a Conference Committee, is the Consumer Assistance to Recycle and Save (CARS) Program (pages 52-58). Naming bills in deceptive and often cutesy terms has truly become an art form. The CARS Program merits being in the same zone as the ever-so [...]

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The best (blog and academic) work that I’ve seen on why we should work with gallons per mile (gpm), rather than miles per gallon (mpg), comes from Duke Professor Rick Larrick. He blogs at MPG Illusion and GPM Calculator. As we consider the Clunker of a Deal (otherwise known as Cash for Clunkers), it is [...]

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Hybrids are too often thought of simply in terms of personal vehicles.
They are also penetrating the big vehicle market space. Consider the average delivery truck and all its starts/stops. There is a lot of energy to capture there, which is why UPS is pursuing hybrids. And, as per Walmart and its hybrid trucks, they are [...]

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