Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

City Hall wants diesel drivers to swap for electric vehicles
WBEZ91.5 ^ | 11-27-12 | Lauren Choolijan

Posted on 11/27/2012 8:04:45 PM PST by smokingfrog

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel wants to make a deal with diesel truck owners in the Chicagoland area: give up your truck, and the city will give you a voucher that covers around 60 percent of the cost of a new electric one.

Officials say the project could help with air quality and even quieter streets across the city. By next spring, fleets in Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry and Will counties will be able to apply for the program.

“The city is encouraging companies to invest in electric vehicles in order to incrementally improve Chicago’s air quality while helping to advance these emerging transportation technologies,” Chicago Department of Transportation Commissioner Gabe Klein said in a statement. “By offering a voucher at the point of sale, rather than as a post-sale rebate, we hope that more companies will be encouraged to participate in the program.”

But not all drivers are jumping at the chance to trade in their truck. Phil LaPalermo, co-owner of All Ways Paving and Plowing, says he's not sure there's an electrical vehicle out there that can compare to the power of a diesel truck. LaPalermo said he likes the idea of using alternative energy sources, but the diesel engine is what keeps his fleet plowing and paving streets all over the city and suburbs.

(Excerpt) Read more at wbez.org ...


TOPICS: Government; News/Current Events; US: Illinois
KEYWORDS: diesel; fedgrants; friendsofbarack; pipedream; trucks
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-6061-67 next last
To: M-cubed
Silly boy, everyone knows Unicorns poop SkittlesTM
41 posted on 11/27/2012 10:04:28 PM PST by smokingfrog ( sleep with one eye open (<o> ---)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 36 | View Replies]

To: mylife
Yeah, that's probably more my speed. Not much of a chick magnet though.... ☺
42 posted on 11/27/2012 10:09:16 PM PST by smokingfrog ( sleep with one eye open (<o> ---)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 40 | View Replies]

To: smokingfrog

Nah..


43 posted on 11/27/2012 10:11:17 PM PST by mylife (The Roar Of The Masses Could Be Farts)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 42 | View Replies]

To: smokingfrog
LMAO!!...I thought of that after I posted...but I didn't want to bring Travon into it and make it racist
44 posted on 11/27/2012 10:17:36 PM PST by M-cubed
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 41 | View Replies]

To: Darnright

None.

There are motors that can do it and even exceed the torque of a diesel engine.

But there is no power source that will give a usable amount of power before recharge.

But an electric truck is much easier to start when its -30 in Chicago. The heater will kill the battery before your out of the parking lot but eh, that’s just a technicality.


45 posted on 11/27/2012 10:37:35 PM PST by cableguymn (The founding fathers would be shooting by now..)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 29 | View Replies]

To: Iron Munro

How bout a natural gas powered one? Those they do make.


46 posted on 11/27/2012 10:38:20 PM PST by cableguymn (The founding fathers would be shooting by now..)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 25 | View Replies]

To: Jonty30

they are stench mobiles. however, i rate that as a problem of
lesser importance than say removing the gangstas from control of the streets.


47 posted on 11/27/2012 10:41:17 PM PST by RitchieAprile (the obsteperous gentleman..)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 16 | View Replies]

To: Graybeard58
I always thought that when you convert energy from one form to another that there is a net loss and therefore it would make more sense to run them directly with diesel engines. Is it just not practical for some reason?

The reason is that it is much more cost effective to generate electricity and use electric motors to drive the wheels than to build a transmission and clutch to handle the power.

Diesel locomotives are typically 2000 to 6000 horsepower, but have a limited RPM range. They would need a lot more gears than a car which has a transmission with 3 to six gear ratios. And, the gears would need to be much larger than automotive gears to handle the loads. Transmissions also have internal losses. These are typically low, but even 1% loss of a few thousand horsepower is a lot of heat, which is where the power loss shows up.

48 posted on 11/27/2012 11:02:01 PM PST by CurlyDave
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 21 | View Replies]

To: Red Badger

Ping-Diesel


49 posted on 11/27/2012 11:36:59 PM PST by moose07 (The truth will out, one day.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 48 | View Replies]

To: smokingfrog

DIESEL electric trains! And trains don’t have batteries that catch fire when wet. The Rhamster ignores natural gas which already is running trucks all over the city. What a publicity seeking putz.


50 posted on 11/27/2012 11:52:13 PM PST by Thebaddog (Obama won, we lost)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 22 | View Replies]

To: smokingfrog

Hybrids perhaps, but not total electric. Caterpillar has at least one maybe a few diesel/electric dozers out now.


51 posted on 11/28/2012 12:50:34 AM PST by MachIV
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 22 | View Replies]

To: smokingfrog

Let’s see - a good diesel truck can tow 15,000 lbs and an electric truck can tow what - an empty trailer, but it cuts the range down from 60 miles to 22 miles?


52 posted on 11/28/2012 3:44:13 AM PST by trebb (Allies no longer trust us. Enemies no longer fear us.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: huldah1776
Let’s go electric instead of natural gas. dupes.

We'll just burn the natural gas in power plants to make the electricity. Then the trucks will be carbon free. Simple. < /sarc>

53 posted on 11/28/2012 3:52:12 AM PST by Straight Vermonter (Posting from deep behind the Maple Curtain)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies]

To: smokingfrog

I want to watch when the first trucker actually buys an electric truck. He won’t be able to show his fact at the teamsters’ hall. It would be like a member of a road gang riding a Vespa instead of a Harley.


54 posted on 11/28/2012 4:49:09 AM PST by BuffaloJack (Children, pets, and slaves get taken care of. Free Men take care of themselves.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: smokingfrog

http://www.proterra.com/index.php/mediacenter/companynews/
I live in Tallahassee. Several years ago the city (I think they did it with grants) got the local privately owned buss company to buy electric busses. They are GM products. You never see them around town. According to my friends in government the busses are always in the garage for one problem after another. I haven’t heard anything about them (or seen them) lately and can’t find a word on-line.

I suspect that GM is about to announce an electric truck line. It doesn’t matter if your product doesn’t work so long as the government forces somebody to buy it. What happens when a “global warming” snow storm shuts down Chicago and it is too cold for the batteries to work on the snow plows? I suspect that Rahm will punish the snow removal contractors.


55 posted on 11/28/2012 4:52:30 AM PST by Gen.Blather
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Safrguns

just thinking about the amount of electricity that would need to be generated to charge all of the batteries


No problem. Each electric truck would have two trailers instead of one. The first trailer carries the gigantic battery (the size of a standard flatbed trailer) and a large solar voltaic array to charge them. An auxiliary wind generator is carried so that when (and if) the truck exceeds 15 mph it will help charge the batteries.

The second trailer would be about the size of a pick-up bed and carry the “goods.”

Now, that’s the future of electric tractor-trailer rigs.


56 posted on 11/28/2012 5:00:36 AM PST by DH (Once the tainted finger of government touches anything the rot begins)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 7 | View Replies]

To: Safrguns

just thinking about the amount of electricity that would need to be generated to charge all of the batteries


No problem. Each electric truck would have two trailers instead of one. The first trailer carries the gigantic battery (the size of a standard flatbed trailer) and a large solar voltaic array to charge them. An auxiliary wind generator is carried so that when (and if) the truck exceeds 15 mph it will help charge the batteries.

The second trailer would be about the size of a pick-up bed and carry the “goods.”

Now, that’s the future of electric tractor-trailer rigs.


57 posted on 11/28/2012 5:02:56 AM PST by DH (Once the tainted finger of government touches anything the rot begins)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 7 | View Replies]

To: smokingfrog
Officials say the project could help with air quality

Don't they call Chicago 'The Windy City'? (hint, hint)

58 posted on 11/28/2012 5:19:00 AM PST by Moltke ("I am Dr. Sonderborg," he said, "and I don't want any nonsense.")
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: smokingfrog

We all knew he was an ignorant leftist flake. Now he has shown that to be unarguably true.


59 posted on 11/28/2012 5:22:12 AM PST by bert ((K.E. N.P. N.C. +12 .....The fairest Deduction to be reduced is the Standard Deduction)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: smokingfrog

Must be one hell of a kick back Rahm is getting from the electric truck manufacturer...to push this dumb idea...


60 posted on 11/28/2012 5:24:25 AM PST by Popman
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-6061-67 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson