New California Environmental Rule Could Disrupt Radios, Phones

California’s Air Resources Board has ordered that that, by 2012, vehicle windows must be coated with microscopic specks of metal oxide to reflect sunlight and keep cars cooler, so that they require less air conditioning, but this may interfere with cell phones, satellite radio and even garage door openers. The California Manufacturers and Technology Association, Garmin International and the International Bridge, Tunnel & Turnpike Association all objected to the "Cool Cars" rule, saying that more time was needed to study how window glazing would affect these devices.

They pointed out that the reflective metallic material can degrade GPS signals. They warn that sunroofs would have to be “effectively black,” and Chrysler has said it may have to stop selling the soft-top convertible Jeep Wrangler in California because the flexible plastic windows can’t meet the standard.

Proponents argue that the rule will save 700,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide by 2020—or the equivalent of taking 140,000 cars off the road for a year.

DOT, EPA Propose New Fuel Economy, CO2 Rules

After President Barack Obama outlined the plan in a May speech, the U.S. Department of Transportation and Environmental Protection Agency have announced a coordinated program to improve the fuel economy standards of passenger cars and trucks as well as lower greenhouse gas emissions.

The two agencies will create a national program to coordinate vehicle standards for the model years 2012-2016. Rather than having three standards (DOT, EPA and a state standard), the agencies will create one corporate average fuel economy standard and the first-ever greenhouse gas emissions standard.

Working with automakers, the federal government plans for the overall light-duty vehicle fleet to reach 35.5 mpg by 2016, well ahead of a CAFE law passed by Congress in 2007 that required an average fuel economy of 35.0 mpg by 2020.

Congress Wants to Add $216 Million for New Vehicle Research

While most of the news coming out of Congress this month will center around the raucous health care debate, the U.S. House of Representatives will consider a bill that would boost research spending on new vehicle technologies by $216 million.

Introduced by Rep. Gary Peters (D-Michigan), the bill calls for $550 million to be spent by the Department of Energy on vehicle research for 2010, rather than the $334 million requested by the Obama administration. Peters and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Maryland) made the announcement yesterday in Troy, Mich.

The proposal comes with strong backing from the automakers and the United Auto Workers. It passed out of committee in July without any objection, but is it a slice of pork from Peters or will it serve a purpose beyond what the Obama administration envisioned when it allocated the initial funds? Or is it a drop in the bucket when addressing a radical future of electric cars with little-to-no infrastructure support?

Bill Would Add $216M to New Vehicle Research (Detroit Free Press)

EPA Ready for 35.5 MPG by 2016

The Environmental Protection Agency has delivered its final draft of the proposed new fuel economy rules. The agency will target a 35.5 mpg standard for vehicles by 2016, according to Lisa Jackson, EPA administrator.

The proposed rules will first come under review by the White House, but barring any surprises, President Barack Obama will likely agree to this first step in regulating greenhouse gas emissions from passenger vehicles.

The proposal is a compromise between the federal government, state governments and automakers. California and a dozen other states have tried to implement their own fuel economy standards — a precedent that automakers and dealers claimed would create confusion and uncertainty among both the auto companies and consumers.

The rules, which will be made public later this month, will explain how automakers can meet this standard beginning in 2012. The auto industry and the public will then have a 90-day period to comment on the proposal; by law, the final rules must be set by next spring.

Of all the environmental fights the Obama administration has in front of it, this will likely be the easiest because it has already obtained the auto industry's cooperation in raising fuel economy standards.

EPA Drafts Fuel Economy Rules (Detroit Free Press)

Study Shows Decline in Congestion, but Challenges Remain

A silver lining of the recession has been a decrease in traffic. Americans spent an average of 36.1 hours in traffic in 2007, down from an all-time peak of 37.5 hours in 2005, according to a study released by the Texas Transportation Institute at Texas A&M University. The last time traffic congestion declined was in 1991.

The institute’s Urban Mobility Report shows just how closely traffic is tied to economic activity, but the silver lining of decreased congestion evaporates when the study considers just how massive this country’s transportation problems still are. Congestion eats up $78 billion from the economy by siphoning off 4.2 billion lost hours and 2.9 billion gallons of wasted fuel.

And, unfortunately, the traffic decline is a blip in an otherwise upward trend that in 2007 cost every American driver $750.

The most congested area, according to researchers who studied 439 urban areas, remains Los Angeles, with an average of 70 hours spent in traffic per commuter. Washington, D.C., came in second at 62 hours, while Atlanta, Houston and the San Francisco-Oakland area finished out the top five.

Traffic Fatalities Take Biggest Toll in Developing World

Traffic accidents ranked as the 10th leading cause of death in the world in 2004, but they’re on track to become the fifth-leading cause by 2030, with most of the increase coming in the developing world, according to a report by the World Health Organization.

The numbers speak for themselves: Of the 1.2 million people killed in traffic accidents around the world each year, most are not in cars, but on motorcycles, bicycles or walking along the roadside. These occur on the crowded roads and urban grids of developing countries.

High-income countries like the U.S. and Western Europe have 52% of the registered vehicles worldwide but make up only 8.5% of traffic deaths. Developing countries in sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia have only 9% of the vehicles but 42% of the deaths.

In other words, the countries with the fewest cars still have the most traffic deaths.

The report points to the five greatest risk factors: speed, drunken driving, helmets, seat belts and child restraints. The countries that have adopted laws enforcing standards in these areas tend to fare best, but only 15% have laws that address each area sufficiently, according to the report.

Fewer Cars, More Traffic Fatalities (The Washington Post)

Could a Conservative Boycott Hurt the New GM?

Now that we the taxpayers are set to own 60% of GM when it emerges from bankruptcy, far-right conservatives have called upon people to boycott what they call “Government Motors.”

Among them are radio talk show hosts like Hugh Hewitt, who said that “every dollar spent with GM is a dollar spent against free enterprise.” Rush Limbaugh has backed off a bit from initial calls for a brand shutout, but that hasn’t stopped his vitriolic attacks against the U.S. automaker.

Could a boycott actually work? No one seems to think so. It’s easy to see how President Barack Obama’s action could get a conservative’s blood boiling, but people buy cars for economic reasons, or for a car’s quality or status. Otherwise, “buy American” should have worked all those years ago, right?

There’s also the possibility that right-wing venom could make car buyers on the coasts more sympathetic to GM products. Right now, GM sells very poorly in those two regions, especially in major markets like California and New York, where voters tend to do the exact opposite of what people like Hewitt and Limbaugh tell them.

What do you think? Could a boycott affect GM’s future? Would you ever consider joining a boycott of a car company? Let us know in the comments.

Right Wing Threatens to Launch Boycott of “Government Motors” (Detroit Bureau)

'Cash-for-Clunkers' Passes House

The cash-for-clunkers bill that would give owners of old vehicles vouchers to scrap their cars and buy new fuel-efficient models passed the House today by a vote of 298-119.

The final House version would apply only to vehicles that averaged less than 18 mpg combined city and highway driving. $3,500 could be applied to a new light truck or van that was more fuel efficient than the old one by at least 4 mpg or $4,500 if the new vehicle is 10 mpg more efficient.

A similar bill is still being debated in the Senate, where the sticking point is funding. The House version calls for $4 billion in new spending tacked onto a war supplemental, while the Senate wants to take the money from the economic stimulus package. The House version would not be retroactive, so if you just bought a car it wouldn’t do you much good, and the program will expire after a year or when funding runs out.

President Barack Obama said he supports the bill but questions remain to be answered, and it is unclear what form the final bill will take since the Senate and House versions must be reconciled.

House OKs $4 Billion ‘Cash for Clunkers’ (CNNMoney)

Rural Chinese Quickly Becoming Car Owners

While automotive sales flounder in the U.S., rural China has seen an unprecedented explosion of car buying. This is largely due to some fairly radical government incentives to spur car buying and provide aid to the economy.

The measures include a 50% reduction of the sales tax, elimination of road maintenance fees, and an enormous 10% rebate for all rural residents purchasing vehicles with engines that are 1.3 liters or smaller.

Rural farmers are cashing in their life savings in order to take advantage of the deal. In the city of Chuzhou, 200 miles north of Shanghai, the per capita income is $1,700 per year. Farmers and other rural residents are purchasing vehicles like the Wuling Sunshine (a boxy micro-minivan) for between $5,000 and $7,500 in hopes of using the car to earn money by starting a delivery or taxi service.

The results in car sales have been drastic. For the first four months of the year, car sales rose in China by 9%, to 3.8 million vehicles, with record months in March and April. In comparison, U.S. sales fell 37% in the same four-month period.

The surge has its scary side, though. While you certainly cannot begrudge people for wanting to raise their standard of living, Chuzhou dealerships can’t keep enough cars in stock to satisfy demand. Some of the rural areas mentioned include millions of people. As more of the rural Chinese become car owners, the number of new drivers hitting the road represents a sizable environmental problem for China in terms of its already disastrous air quality, and for the world in terms of climate change. Also, the increased demand for gasoline to run all those cars surely will not help the future of oil prices.

In Rural China, a Bumper Crop of New Car Owners (L.A. Times)

GPS Service Could Begin to Fail in 2010

Sorry, did you think there wasn’t already enough to worry about right now? A wheezing economy, bankrupt automakers and lagging car sales still too rosy for your taste? Luckily, now we can also fret about the possibility of the Global Positioning System beginning to fail in 2010.

As navigation systems have become more commonplace in cars, smart phones and other devices, the old GPS satellites that keep those nav systems on the ball have begun to fail, according to the Government Accountability Office. Meanwhile, the Air Force — which is tasked with running the GPS network — has “struggled to successfully build GPS satellites within cost and schedule goals.”

Currently, the next generation of satellites has had its launch delayed by nearly three years while coming in $870 million over budget (and counting). The first satellite of this replacement crop is now scheduled to launch in November.

This may be too late to avoid interruption in GPS service for civilian drivers and a potential headache for the military, which relies on GPS for a number of different operations.

The GAO points to a lack of leadership in GPS satellite acquisition, noting that studies have found a “lack of single point of authority for space programs” as well as high turnover in program managers.

So, President Obama, we know you’re busy and all, but if you could get around to fixing this, too, most of us have totally forgotten how to read a road map.

Global Positioning System: Significant Challenges in Sustaining and Upgrading Widely Used Capabilities (GAO.gov)