Driving a Chevy Bolt EV electric car across Canada, all the way

2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV electric car on Coquilhalla Highway, BC, Canada, May 2017 [Boyd/Hetherington]To celebrate Canada's 150th birthday, Barb Hetherington and Buddy Boyd embarked on their maiden voyage to prove electric car travel is feasible in a very large country with some very sparsely populated areas. With a 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV as their chariot, and their dog Piper for company, the couple left Victoria, British Columbia. They don't plan...

Missing piece in global vehicle emission puzzle: heavy trucks

Toyota 'Project Portal' proof-of-concept hydrogen fuel-cell powered semi tractor, for Port of LAA global push to reduce vehicle emissions and create cleaner air for future generations has been underway for half a century now. However, while many governments around the world have introduced lower emission and higher fuel-efficiency standards for passenger cars, another large contributor to global emissions has mostly traveled under the radar...

Plug-in electric car sales in Canada, June 2017: Prime time

2017 Toyota Prius Prime, Catskill Mountains, NY, Nov 2016Toyota made a strong return to the Canadian plug-in electric vehicle market in June, selling 144 Prius Prime plug-in hybrids. The tally is all the more remarkable as the vehicle has so far launched only in Quebec. Why? That province is the home of Canada’s sole zero-emission vehicle mandate, patterned on California’s. Depending on the...

France plans to ban all gasoline, diesel vehicles by 2040

Nicolas Hulot, French minister of ecological transition, announces 2040 ban on vehicles with enginesTo most North Americans, the idea of banning all vehicles with internal-combustion engines seems unthinkable. Filling up with gasoline (or diesel) is as American as are dispersed low-density suburbs without mass transit, bike paths, or even sidewalks. Europeans, more of whom live in cities and most of whom have access to a more balanced set of...