Free Republic

Hertz Global Holdings announced Thursday that it plans to trim its electric vehicle fleet, citing high repair costs, and reinvest in gas-powered vehicles. In Hertz’s regulatory filing on Thursday, the company stated that it will sell 20,000 EVs. The announcement comes after the car rental firm committed to making 25% of its fleet electric by the end of 2024. The company has since pulled back on that goal. It also previously agreed to purchase 100,000 Teslas by the end of 2022 and 65,000 Polestar vehicles over the next five years. Approximately 80% of the car rental firm’s EV fleet are...

To help American carmakers stay in business, autoworkers grudgingly gave up pay raises and some benefits four years ago. Now that General Motors, Ford and Chrysler are making money again, workers want compensation for their sacrifice. Just how much they get is the central question hanging over contract talks that start this week between Detroit and one of the nation's largest and most powerful unions. The negotiations, the first since Chrysler and GM took government aid and emerged from bankruptcy, will set wages and benefits for 111,000 members of the United Auto Workers, including those at Ford, which avoided bankruptcy...

The U.S. airline industry is rebounding. For the sixth consecutive month, carriers brought in more money than they did last year. "We are seeing some light at the end of the tunnel," says Dave Castelveter of the Air Transport Association, an industry trade group. "You know we have been faced with challenges like none other." The industry was clobbered after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. Then the global economy soured, and people stopped traveling. Fuel prices climbed to record levels. In response, the airlines had to cut costs. They reduced the number of flights and slashed their payrolls. They began...

"When media executives look at their shrinking audiences, they rarely attribute the decline to their liberal bias in covering the news. But recent developments at the Washington Post demonstrate that a return to fair coverage attracts readers. Since Katharine Weymouth became publisher more than a year ago, and she named Marcus Brauchli, a former Wall Street Journal editor, executive editor in September, the paper has been making an honest effort to be fair. Wash. Post Publisher Katharine Weymouth Hit jobs against Bush administration programs and Republicans in general have virtually vanished. Instead, the paper presents issues fairly. No longer is...

While US airlines cut and slash service -- care and feeding -- of their travelers, the Asian airlines have been buying new planes, installing elaborate entertainment systems, and allowing passengers in-flight e-mail and web surfing options. Add to that plush seats and meals created by celebrity chefs, and the result is that America doesn't know service. Cathay Pacific and Singapore Airlines services beat all American carriers, hands down. On the long-haul flights, choices of movies, frequent meals (America doesn't need this) -- Western or Asian style -- and friendly service are the standard. Not only are the US airlines behind,...