2nd Green Revolution

The United States government announced the recipients of $8 billion in high speed rail stimulus funding today. Three projects will receive the lion’s share of money set aside in last year’s stimulus bill. The projects will be based in California, Illinois, and Florida. According to a press release from The White House, President Obama and Vice-President Biden stated that “the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) is awarding $8 billion to states across the country to develop America’s first nationwide program of high-speed intercity passenger rail service.”

The following chart from the Christian Science Monitor via the Associated Press provides a breakdown of the projects receiving more than half a billion dollars: Read the rest of this entry »

My mother-in-law recently purchased a 4 door Volkswagen (VW) Jetta TDI clean diesel sedan. After 3,500 mi (~6,000km) I had the opportunity to drive it this past week in the less than ideal conditions of an icy Minnesota winter. Not being a northerner (I hail from sunny Southern California) I found the car to provide a smooth ride on the compacted snow and ice. With a six speed automatic transmission, the car shifts into gear at low RPM, furthering its gas sipping reputation. At highway speeds, the engine runs between 1800 & 2200 RPM, much lower than my four cylinder sedan.

According to VW’s website, the Jetta TDI (which retails for $22,660) has won several awards: Read the rest of this entry »

Over the past few days we have featured a couple of different stories about geothermal energy. The first recapped two of the main sources (deep well drilling for electricity generation and ground source for home heating and cooling). The second gave you a homeowner’s perspective. Today we bring you another take on geothermal. Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana (alma mater of David Letterman) has implemented a plan to power the school with geothermal. Read the rest of this entry »

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The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act has been put back to work replacing inefficient devices with more conservation minded ones. Instead of cars being brought to dealer lots, large household appliances (namely refrigerators, washing machines, and dishwashers) can be turned in for rebates. According to government’s  Energy Star website, the “Amounts commonly offered [on the rebates] range from $50 to $250, depending upon the product being purchased, purchase price, and other market factors.” Read the rest of this entry »

Tuesday marked the beginning of what could be the turning point in modernization of the nation’s electricity grid. According to the Department of Energy (DOE), “President Barack Obama . . . announced the largest single energy grid modernization investment in U.S. history, funding a broad range of technologies that will spur the nation’s transition to a smarter, stronger, more efficient and reliable electric system.” In the article, the DOE provided a map of the award winners (as a PDF). Included in the statement (from the DOE) were the following measures:

• Empowering Consumers to Save Energy and Cut Utility Bills — $1 billion
• Making Electricity Distribution and Transmission More Efficient — $400 million
• Integrating and Crosscutting Across Different “Smart” Components of a Smart Grid — $2 billion
• Building a Smart Grid Manufacturing Industry — $25 million Read the rest of this entry »

From Amtrak’s “Arrive” magazine Sept./Oct. 2009, a summary of major clean energy spending provisons in the stimulus bill:

• $11 billion for smart grid
• $6.3 billion for state and local governments to modernize buildings with emphasis on improving energy efficiency
• $5 billion for low-income weatherization programs
• $2 billion to fund a $7500 tax credit for consumers buying new plug-in hybrid cars
• $2 billion for next gen battery research for electric vehicles

As the final installment in National Public Radio’s week long series on high speed rail, two Chicago based reporters looked at the Midwest region, which hopes to connect 12 major metropolitan cities. Union Station in Chicago is the fourth busiest train station in the nation, having served 3 million people last year.

Under the Midwest high speed rail proposal, Chicago would be the hub. According to NPR reporters, three lines have priority. These include a Saint Louis, Missouri; Detroit, Michigan; and Milwaukee-Madison, Wisconsin line, each of which would emanate from Chicago. The most popular train route from Chicago is currently the “Hiawatha” which runs to Milwaukee.

Back in July Illinois Governor Pat Quinn held a Midwest high speed rail summit which included representatives of eight states: Michigan, Indiana, Missouri, Wisconsin, Iowa, Ohio, Minnesota, and Illinois. Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm cited estimates that a high speed rail network could provide 57,000 permanent jobs and 15,000 construction jobs. Read the rest of this entry »

Last Thursday, National Public Radio’s week long series investigating high speed rail in the United States took a look at California’s plan as well as those who doubt that train travel is the answer to America’s transportation and energy future.

NPR suggests that California may be the most likely place for a high speed rail line. The state has been working on a plan for 13 years and last year voters approved nearly $10 billion (US) in bonds to fund the project. If completed as planned, California’s high speed rail network will connect San Francisco to San Diego, as well as Los Angeles and Sacramento, in addition to several other cities. California’s High Speed Rail Authority hopes to be ready for construction by 2012, with the help of stimulus money available through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

The total bill for high speed rail in California would be roughly $45 billion (US). In addition to the high cost, University of Minnesota’s David Levinson claims that the rail is a “solution to a nonexistent problem,” Read the rest of this entry »

Wednesday’s story from National Public Radio week long series on High Speed Rail focused on so-called multimodal design or transportation. This idea goes beyond the rail system and into what happens when riders get off the rail. A major concern for commuters and rail riders is the complete public transportation equation. Once riders arrive at the train station after riding trains (high speed or otherwise), there is often a gap between the intended destination and the station itself. The difficulty arises when trying to finish the trip and reach the destination, not to mention getting to the station in the first place.

In order to achieve these goals, it is imperative to design transportation systems that work in concert with each other. Read the rest of this entry »

NPR reported on Tuesday, as part of their week long series on high speed rail in the United States, that the federal government has already received 278 proposal for rail projects from 40 states and Washington DC. These proposals are competing for the $8 billion (US) made available in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Tuesday’s report was divided into three stories, focusing on the Southeast, Northwest, and Florida, with the former including states from Louisiana to Georgia while the northwest project linked Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia.

According to the report, Florida has requested $2.5 billion (US) for the first leg (approximately 100 miles) of a statewide system stretching from Orlando to Tampa. They are hoping to be “shovel ready” in time for disbursements of the stimulus funding. NPR reports that Florida has been planning and working on a rail system for 30 years, indicating that it may indeed be ready to begin as soon as the funding is available. Florida’s department of transportation is also seeking funds to develop the next planned rail line which would connect Orlando to Miami.

In the Pacific Northwest, a high speed rail project hopes to link Portland, Oregon with Seattle, Washington and Vancouver, British Columbia. Read the rest of this entry »