24 Apr 2024 16:21:05 UTC

 EDITOR'S CHOICE

A Belgian Lesson in Taming the Automobile

23 May 2023 | Synopsis

"...the Belgian capital of 1.2 million has instead earned a reputation for being painfully gridlocked..

"Brussels' transportation network has been reconfigured, shifting trips away from cars and toward bikes, transit and walking. The share of bike commuters has tripled in just four years...With most residents housebound [by COVID lockdown] the sudden appearance of so many bike lanes grabbed popular attention.

"In 2017, cars accounted for 64% of travel kilometers within the Brussels region; by 2022 that share had fallen to 49%..."

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Meet Fokker's Next Gen Hydrogen Plane: The Future of Dutch Aerospace?

23 May 2023 | Synopsis

"With €25 million in funding from the Dutch government, and an additional EU Clean Aviation grant of undisclosed amount, Fokker is aiming at a 2035 entry into service of a clean-sheet aircraft design operating on liquid hydrogen. The plane's intended range is 2,500 km, meaning it could fly across Europe from London to Kyiv

Fokker has opted for liquid hydrogen and direct combustion...the plane to also be able to fly on both good old kerosene and sustainable aviation fuel."

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Italian Coachbuilder Builds One-Off Electric Citroen Ami Inspired By Aston Martin DBS

23 May 2023 | Synopsis

"The one-off tiny Ami is finished in a specification similar to the Aston Martin DBS Superleggera...Corriere Motori...designed more than 60 custom parts for the car, and only 40 were used for this particular model...Ami costs roughly £8,000 in the UK, approximately $9,900.

"...the Ami has a sizeable (sarcasm alert) 5.5-kilowatt-hour battery, enough for a 43-mile range. Monaco is less than one square mile, so an entire day of driving is more than possible."

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Where in the U.S. is Climate Change Striking the Hardest?

23 May 2023 | Synopsis

"...you might want to know which U.S. cities or states could hold up best in a warmer world...In a world where climate change escalates, there are no winners...Climate change is a domino effect, and we all stand to lose if one piece falls

"States already experiencing the fallout of climate change are evident in NOAA's billion-dollar disaster list. Texas leads with an average of 5.3 such events per year, double the number experienced in the pre

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Will Autonomous Bus Captains Replace Bus Drivers?

23 May 2023 | Synopsis

"Scotland launches autonomous bus fleet near Edinburgh, but it's actually creating jobs instead of losing them to automation.

"...a preview of a future, whether distant or close, when Level 4 tech will be scaled enough to possibly be more cost effective than paying a driver. Bus fleets will still have plenty of maintenance personnel and perhaps a remote driver monitoring the progress of 10 buses at once with the help of AI..."

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Ford Pulls Out All the Stops to Outduel Tesla

22 May 2023 | Synopsis

Company "road map separated...activities into three units: Ford Model e, focused on developing electric vehicles and related software; Ford Blue, which brought together the activities of gasoline (internal combustion) engine vehicles; and Ford Pro, dedicated to fleet customers...company said that it would spend $50 billion on electric vehicles between 2022 and 2026..."

Four lithium mining companies to supply Ford with key battery minerals.

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Technology Will Not Restore Our Pre-Climate Crisis Future

22 May 2023 | Synopsis

"In coming decades, it will be essential that communities across the nation and world find a way to sustain a decent life amid ecological breakdown."

"Weaning the world's rich economies off fossil fuels will require adaptation to a much smaller energy supply. Attempting to replicate the high-energy economies of the fossil-fuel era using non-fossil energy sources would require extensive plunder of the Earth's resources..."

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This City Just Made A Mind-Blowing Announcement About Its Residents' Transportation Habits: "It's Quite Astonishing"

22 May 2023 | Synopsis

"...the City of London Corporation transportation committee [reported] bikes were more common than cars in London during peak hours in 2022...According to Forbes, the use of passenger cars in London has been dropping for decades...At the same time, bicycles have been on the rise, and in 2022, bike users actually overtook car users...Bikes are also at 102% of their pre-pandemic levels"

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Green Hydrogen Assets Carry Similar Credit Risk to Thermal Power

22 May 2023 | Synopsis

"Credit risks of project-financed green hydrogen assets are currently similar to those of thermal power for standalone assets, or potentially greater, according to a [rating agency] Fitch update.

"Key operating metrics will determine the success of the project and therefore whether generated cash flows are sufficient to service the debt. These will include how efficiently, and at which rate, hydrogen is produced, the plant's availability, the ability to respond to intermittent power, and the hydrogen purity levels, where this is critical.?

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An American Oil Hub Is Pivoting to Offshore Wind

22 May 2023 | Synopsis

"...just one slice of the energy transition reshaping the Gulf of Mexico region, which is increasingly dotted with offshore wind projects...new companies and jobs are sprouting up to support the nascent $100 billion industry...45 miles up the coast from Edison Chouest, research and design firm Gulf Wind Technology is building a massive wind tunnel as part of its push to make "hurricane-proof" wind turbines.

"A single offshore wind farm built in the Gulf could create about 4,500 jobs and provide a $445 million boost to the economy."

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