EVers - Time to Shine!

Got this today from the Union of Concerned Scientists. Seems the Transportation Secretary needs a bit of help understanding how EVs will help the public deal with increasing fuel prices. Calling all blog commenters!

UCS said:

Please leave your personal comment on the Fast Lane blog and tell him that Americans are watching his actions, and want him to support a clean car standard of 60 miles per gallon that will help relieve pain at the pump, cut pollution, and bring new vehicle technologies—and the jobs they create—to market.

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Info and posting tips from the UCS:
http://www.ucsusa.org/clean_vehicles/what_you_can_do/dot-blog-comment-tips.html

Secretary LaHood's DOT blog:

http://fastlane.dot.gov/2011/04/electric-drive-summit-.html

The DOT blog is moderated - please also send your comments to the UCS so they can police the submissions and make sure we're being heard:
http://www.ucsusa.org/clean_vehicles/what_you_can_do/sec-lahood-reportback.html

UCS said:

Department of Transportation (DOT) Secretary Ray LaHood recently wrote in his Fast Lane blog, "With gas prices rising above four dollars per gallon, families and businesses are feeling the effects. And once again elected officials are clamoring for action to instantly reverse that trend. But we know that you can't bring down energy prices overnight."

But while Sec. LaHood then went on to tout the DOT's role in electric vehicle development, he did not mention that the way to get these vehicles—and the pump savings and emissions relief they offer—to U.S. drivers is by committing to strong clean car standards through 2025. In fact, Sec. LaHood is poised to make critical decisions on these standards this summer that could be as strong as 60 miles per gallon by 2025. But automakers are pressuring him to set much weaker standards that wouldn’t deliver the savings at the pump, pollution reductions, or oil savings we need.

Sec. LaHood rarely gets comments from the public on his blog—that needs to change today.

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Hmmm....sent two comments so far - apparently neither has made it past the moderators? :shock:

I've been a long-time supporter of UCS, but I have differed with them on a number of issues. This is one of them. Here is a response I sent them a month and a half ago:

UCS said:

As gas prices rocket toward $4 per gallon and beyond, now is the time to tell President Obama your "pain at the pump" story, and that strong clean car standards are the number one option to help solve this problem once and for all.

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No, I disagree. Strong clean car standards are a weak alternative that doesn't really solve anything. The number one option is to build out charging infrastructure for electric cars and provide federal and state rebates for their purchase. There is already a $7500 federal tax credit, but many people make either not enough money or too much (due to AMT) to be able to use it. There is also a $5000 California rebate, but it is only going to be able to cover perhaps two thousand purchases.

The only "once and for all" way to preserve the health of the planet is to stop using oil as a fuel. Even if we ignore global warming, the most critical issue we face in this century, cleaner burning gasoline will not solve the problem of diminishing oil supplies, and diminishing oil supplies will, quite appropriately, force gasoline prices higher.

Ray

I agree 100% Ray.

But today my hide is healing a bit from a couple days spent with my wonderful dad-in-law (very pro business, strong investor, Lib-leaning-R, Fox News rocks, likes the Tea Party). I think too much of the public focus is on some delusion that the president or congress can change the price of gas at the pump. Too much of the public thinks there's plenty of oil - we just need fewer Federal regulations so the poor companies are allowed to drill. Too many Americans think that, you know, 23mpg is a very reasonable fuel economy and the only way to get 30 is to make the cars out of cardboard and put those tiny Chinese scooter engines under the hood. (In other words, US auto company propaganda's working...)

I think that's why the 60+ MPG upgrade is doomed to fail in this country - it's too far for most of the public to grasp - provided they want to grok something new in the first place. "Well, I just don't believe that's possible, you know?" Believe?! It's bloody SCIENCE! :x :?

And I know that's why I'm so frustrated - because I've been driving cars that get more than 40MPG without batteries since 1999 and am on my third year with an EV and we certainly know that 60 is very doable!

But I still don't understand why Secretary LaHood's moderator isn't updating comments...

I think history has shown that auto manufacturers and oil companies do as they want. Raising CAFE standards is valuable but I think funds need to be spent on companies and programs that are singularly invested in directly replace the use of oil. Charging infrastructure, EV's, battery technology, clean energy. The companies also need to have more strict performance contracts and transparent policies for any potential conflicts of interest (Ecotality for Ex).

Ho-lee-COW the comments are flowing in a big way! :shock: