Conserve+Energy+in+Transportation

This page contains information about energy efficient transportation.

What are the major ways you can conserve transportation energy ?: Mass Transit
 * Work close to Home
 * Work in Home
 * Better fuel efficiency
 * Alternative Fuels/power
 * Tax Gasoline
 * Use public transport such as buses or taxi cabs
 * Ride a horse
 * Car Pool
 * Purchase a hybrid or electric car
 * Walk
 * Ride a bike, Its 3 times more efficient than walking, 5 times more efficient than using the train, and 15 to 20 times more efficient than driving a car.
 * Ride a unicycle
 * Don't buy SUVS or trucks

Whenever possible, walk, bike, car pool, or use mass transit. Every gallon of gasoline you save avoids 22 pounds of CO2 emissions. If your car gets 25 miles per gallon, for example, and you reduce your annual driving from 12,000 to 10,000 miles, you'll save 1800 pounds of CO2.

Use ethanol blend fuels instead of normal gasoline. They may actually cost a few cents more per fill-up than the normal gasoline, but there are anecdotal reports that you will get better gas mileage with ethanol blend fuels (due a higher effective octane content), and a slightly lower fuel cost per km (or mile). Try it yourself, compare your mileage on a tank full of normal gasoline, and then with a tank full of ethanol blend. Increased demand for ethanol should result in economies of scale in production, thus eventually lowering the cost below that of normal gasoline on a per unit basis. As for the environment, ethanol blend fuels produce less noxious emissions than normal gasoline. **(Jake)**

When shopping, consider buying a "hybrid". The current offerings are electric-assisted gasoline cars, but their gas mileage can be phenomenal. The Honda Insight is rated at 3 liters per 100 km or about 70 miles per U.S. gallon. I have friends that have reported getting 90 miles per U.S. gallon with careful driving in the Insight. The Toyota Prius seats 4 adults, and boasts a 4 liters per 100 km (52 miles per U.S. gallon - city driving) fuel consumption. I have driven one of these, and can confirm these figures from personal experience. **(Jake)**

Make sure your vehicle is running properly. Bad ignition components, fouled spark plugs and dirty air filters will all increase fuel consumption and reduce performance. Check the tire pressure on your vehicles. Underinflated tires increases fuel consumption and tire wear. Overinflated tires can cause uneven tire wear, and reduce the contact area with the road, and control of the vehicle. **(Jake)**

The reason for the increase of fuel consumption, you may ask. When parts are dirty they dont allow proper function and make the work these parts work harder then what they should have to. Think of it like this, when you run you start off good and your running strong. Within time you get tired and your body works harder to run and breath. Well thats kinda what happens to a car. **(Branden)**

School buses travel in excess of four billion miles annually consuming 900 million gallons of fuel, transporting 55 percent of the school enrollment (grades K-12). Since the fuel allocation emergency, school transportation managers have begun efforts to reduce the amount of fuel required to transport pupils to and from classroom sessions and school-related activities **GM**

The following is from http://www.alternative-energy-news.info/technology/transportation/public-transit/

[|Prototype Solar Power-Assist for Buses]
[|Sunpods Inc.] is California-based manufacturing company. They produce modular, fully integrated and tested solar power generation systems. Recently they have come out with an idea of the first solar power-assist system for buses. They should be applauded for developing it in a mere six weeks. Their partner is [|Bauer Intelligent Transportation]. The system developed by Sunpods will help Bauer to meet strict anti-pollution standards laid down by the State of California. California state law since 2008 has disallowed diesel vehicles to remain idle for more than five minutes. Now more than 25 states across the United States have anti-idling laws.

[|The Toyota Bus-Train]
A dual mode road/rail vehicle is being tested in Japan by Toyota and its truck-manufacturing division Hino Motors. The bus bridges the gap between road and rail with 4 rubber tires for road use and 4 steel wheels for riding on rails. It can hold 25 passengers and is based on the Toyota Microbus. The bus has been in service in Japan for the past 18 months, and there are plans to produce a newer version by June of 2008. Hino spokesperson Kenichiro Baba has stated that the bus "is expected to be another step toward more practical use of the dual mode vehicle." This could be the [|mass transit] vehicle of the future for Japanese commuters.

[|JPod Transportation Concept]
Minnesota based [|JPods LLC] and Swiss-based Festel Capital have signed a letter of intent to begin raising capital to commercialize JPods' patented form of Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. The JPod system supplies power to the JPod vehicles via power conductor cables supported from the rail support structure. The system is designed to endure the worst extremes of weather and can travel at speeds up to 30-40 miles per hour. The load capacity depends upon the type of vehicle. A standard people [|JPod] can carry 4 people with a generous margin on normal weight.

[|Advantages of Biodiesel Fuel for Transportation]
Modern diesel engine technology has advanced to the point where the advantages of biofuel usage are becoming much greater than the disadvantages. Modern diesel engines produce less noise, smoke or vibrations and they are more fuel-efficient than older model engines. Diesel engines have the added advantage of greater acceleration when compared to gasoline engines on the same model of vehicle. The use of [|biodiesel fuel] may be the solution to the increasing transportation energy crisis, particularly in the farming and shipping transportation sectors.

[|Diesel-Electric Hybrid Train]
Trials will start next year on what is being billed as Europe's first hybrid high-speed train, which can cut emission levels by up to 50%. The system, which has been developed by Hitachi in Japan, consists of a battery-assisted diesel-electric traction engine. The traction unit uses the battery when the train is at rest and in the early stages of acceleration up to around 30 kilometres an hour (19mph), at which point the conventional diesel engine kicks in

[|Sustainable Public Transport Systems]
Growing transportation problems, including gasoline prices and carbon dioxide emissions, are forcing urban governments to consider implementing better [|public transportation] initiatives in an effort to reduce the impact of the declining [|oil economy] on our environment and financial markets. Research and development of renewable energy sources will require increased funding commitments from municipalities already struggling to overcome their congestion and pollution problems. The [|United Nations] hopes that these initiatives will help reduce energy costs, pollution and even urban poverty.

[|Hybrid Electric School Buses in New York]
The State of New York is buying two hybrid electric school buses through a unique purchasing program. The buses will be powered by [|Enova Systems]' post-transmission 80-kilowatt hybrid drive system. Financial support for the project is being provided by a consortium of energy agencies, school districts and transportation providers throught the United States. There are almost 50,000 school buses in the state of New York and energy groups hope to encourage more energy efficient transportation throughout the system.

[|Hydrogen Powered Bus in Winnipeg]
Winnipeg is showcasing it's latest technology innovation, an energy-efficient hydrogen powered bus. Unfortunately this vehicle cost too much money to make it practical for use in the short-term future. The only emissions produced by the bus are water. The bus is worth between $1 and $2 million, according to Manitoba's hydrogen specialist Bob Parsons, and is a big improvement on earlier versions of the hybrid. "It's the only one of its kind that exists in the world at this time," said Parsons.