cy1229 wrote:Wizzard419 wrote:Arguably there is incentive to not research it as the oil industry would suffer if transportation didn't need them as much anymore.
I think even without Disney using gas, the oil industry will be fine. Car companies have tried selling electric cars for the public, but didn't sell well. The oil industry will continue to be big unless some remarkable technological achievement is made.
I meant widespread sales. Similar to how when the country demanded smaller cars in the 70's (due to the oil crisis) the US made unappealing ones while foreign makers did better. The main reason they do tank (though Tesla seems to be surviving and profiting) is they are either the consumer doesn't want them, they can't afford them, or a mixture of both (as in fugly with a price tag near that of a Bentley).
Theoretically, since advancements require research and research requires money the federal money is less free flowing for projects like that. Possibly due to the deep investment in politicians by the industry.[/quote]
Oil companies do have a lot to lose if electric vehicles make serious inroads. But they also have a lot to lose when their product becomes too expensive for the ordinary American to afford it.
The biggest obstacle to all-electric vehicles right now is range / battery storage capacity. There are a handful of groups researching new battery materials that can store a greater charge for greater distance on a single charge, but the best batteries require lithium, mostly mined in South America, and only give 40 miles total distance. For someone like me, who does most driving within 10 miles of home, it would be a great investment and step toward reducing ghg emissions. However, very few Americans are willing to commit that kind of $$ for a vehicle that won't take them more than 20 minutes from home and back again. One thing that sets us apart from almost every other developed country is our independence and love for our automobiles. We like to be able to go when we want, where we want, how we want, and public transportation just doesn't fit that bill. Electric vehicles, right now, can't do that for us.
But... an application such as this one, or national park shuttles, or the like, can be very well served by electric vehicles. I'm curious to know more about the quick charge device they talk about on the website. Is it a high-power, DANGER HIGH VOLTAGE, kind of device? If so I'd be concerned about it being so close to passenger load/unload areas if it's installed at a stop where the bus is idle for 5-10 minutes, such as at a park. Also, this just occurred to me... if the vehicle is charging while loading/unloading passengers, they're going to have a hard time keeping it "plugged in" on the roof when they tilt the bus to allow those in wheelchairs and scooters access onto the bus.[/quote]
the charging mechanism seems to be an articulated arm that swin\gs out and grapples the overhead by sliding down a track on the roof, locking it down like a laptop battery, until the switch is thrown and the bus pulls away, then the swing arm moves away from the loading area, to allow normal buses to pull in... check out the pictures from the link
