Most recent 40 articles: Yale Climate Connections - Transportation
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What are fuel cell EVs? - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Apr 24) |
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Apr 24 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections Most electric vehicles on the road today are powered by batteries. But battery EVs are not the only EVs. Fuel cell EVs run on hydrogen gas, which mixes with oxygen in a chemical reaction to create electricity. The hydrogen is stored in a tank on board the vehicle. Terry: “So it’s very much like gassing up a car right now, in that you pull into a station, you attach a nozzle, this time for a high-pressure gas as opposed to a liquid, and you refuel in a matter of minutes.” Seth Terry is co-founder of New Day Hydrogen, a startup ... Read more ... |
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Hop on a bike with your editors - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Apr 2) |
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Apr 2 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections As spring temperatures warm up, the Yale Climate Connections editors got together to talk about bicycling. Sara, who lives near Chapel Hill, North Carolina, has an electric bike she’s obsessed with. Sam is getting reacquainted with her bike from high school in Madison, Wisconsin. And Pearl, who lives on Aquidneck Island in Rhode Island, is trying to decide how bikes might fit into her family’s life after a childhood spent living on a boat in the Caribbean. This roundtable discussion has been edited and condensed. Sam: I am curious: What’s ... Read more ... |
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When communities evacuate, residents lacking cars can be left behind - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Feb 8) |
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Feb 8 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections When a hurricane, wildfire, or other disaster is about to strike, local officials sometimes tell residents to evacuate to safety. But for people who do not have cars, evacuating can be difficult - if not impossible. Perez: “And so oftentimes, those who rely on public transit really face much longer wait times or are literally left behind.” Yesenia Perez is with the Greenlining Institute, which advocates for economic and environmental justice for people of color. In a recent report, her group noted that during Hurricane Katrina, ... Read more ... |
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High schoolers build solar car that can go 70 miles an hour - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Jan 29) |
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Jan 29 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections Each summer, high schoolers from across the country descend on Fort Worth, Texas, for the Solar Car Challenge. They race hundreds of miles in solar-powered electric cars that they design and build themselves. Sebastian Gonzalez is with the Iron Lions - a team from Greenville, Texas, that won its division in last year’s race from Fort Worth to El Paso. He says they spent the school year creating a car that can charge up on solar alone - and is efficient and fast. Gonzalez: “It’s not just the solar energy that you’re dealing with, ... Read more ... |
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Project spreads the word about tax incentives for electric cars - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Jan 25) |
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Jan 25 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections Federal tax credits can make it cheaper for people to buy electric cars. But not everyone is aware of these incentives. Alfaro: “That information was not getting to the Latino community.” That’s Steve Alfaro of Avanza EV, an initiative that was launched to get the word out. Last summer, his team chose two apartment complexes in Maryland where many residents are Latino and low-income. They knocked on doors, set up tables with information, and organized pop-up EV car shows at the apartments. All outreach was done in English and Spanish. Read more ... |
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How climate change is affecting air travel - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Jan 9) |
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Jan 9 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections Flying a plane through windy, stormy conditions can cause a dangerous, turbulent ride. But a clear blue sky does not guarantee smooth cruising. Williams: “Clear air turbulence is completely invisible, as its name suggests, so it’s nothing to do with flying through a storm. … It comes out of the blue, often without warning.” And Paul Williams, a professor of atmospheric science at the University of Reading in the UK, says it’s getting more common. He explains that clear air turbulence is caused by instability in the jet stream, which ... Read more ... |
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Gasoline is cheap right now - but charging an EV is still cheaper - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Jan 8) |
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Jan 8 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections It was easy to make the case for the low cost of electric vehicle charging way back in 2022 when gasoline prices were high and charging an EV was about 70% cheaper than filling up at the pump. But now that the price of gasoline is dipping below $3 per gallon, is it still cheaper to fill up a car on electrons rather than gasoline? The answer is yes - by a lot. By far the least expensive and least polluting option is to get around on foot, bike, or public transit. But if you need a personal vehicle, EVs cost less to drive compared to a similar ... Read more ... |
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Electric buses could help clean up the air in Vegas - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Dec 26) |
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Dec 26 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections While visitors to Vegas enjoy glitzy casinos and fountain shows, those who live and work in the city have to deal with more burdensome realities. Pelaez: “Las Vegas, being a metropolitan area, faces so many challenges related to air quality.” Yazmyn Pelaez is with the Nevada Conservation League. She says the biggest drivers of local air pollution are cars, trucks, and buses, which spew tailpipe emissions that warm the climate and harm people’s health. Pelaez: “Those most impacted are communities of color and low-income communities who live ... Read more ... |
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It’s getting easier to rent an EV on your next vacation - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Dec 21) |
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Dec 21 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections Vacations are a time for new experiences - like visiting faraway places or tasting different foods. And they can even provide an opportunity to try an electric vehicle for the first time. Many car rental agencies - including Hertz, Avis, and Enterprise - now include EVs in their fleets. Damon Aldrich is with Enterprise Mobility, which manages Enterprise Rent-A-Car, Alamo Rent-A-Car, and National Car Rental. Aldrich: “Most customers love the features in an EV - smooth, quiet acceleration … the driver assistance features are ... Read more ... |
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In a win for the climate, urban speed limits are dropping - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Dec 20) |
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Dec 20 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections Since 2015, Seattle has lowered speed limits across much of its road network, setting residential streets at 20 miles per hour and most larger urban corridors at 25 miles per hour. After these changes took effect, studies showed that car crashes fell by approximately 20%, while the crashes that did occur resulted in significantly fewer injuries. Cities across the U.S. are following Seattle’s lead, with speed limits dropping from Denver and Minneapolis to Washington, D.C., and Hoboken. Although these changes are motivated by the need to reduce deaths ... Read more ... |
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NYC startup launches curbside EV charging stations - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Dec 19) |
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Dec 19 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Tiya Gordon of Brooklyn, New York, wanted to buy a car so she could visit family outside the city. She planned to get an electric vehicle but then realized there was no convenient place in her neighborhood to charge it overnight. Gordon: “It’s super easy to charge an electric vehicle if you live in the suburbs or if you’re suburb-adjacent and you have a garage or a driveway. … If you live in a city, it’s a lot harder because you don’t have that dedicated garage or that dedicated ... Read more ... |
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I drove 6,000 miles in an EV. Here’s what I learned. - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Dec 18) |
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Dec 18 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections When I set out from Montana on a cross-continent, 6,000-mile journey in my electric car, I had two goals. I wanted to visit family and friends in Wisconsin, Maine, Illinois, and Iowa. And I wanted to prove, to myself and others, the possibility of making such a journey by electric vehicle. Before my trip, I absorbed plenty of warnings about EV travel and charging. I read stories of drivers navigating successfully along charger alleys - Chicago to Atlanta, for example - but rarely found reports of successful travel across the so-called charging deserts ... Read more ... |
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Flying was his dream. Now he wants to reduce the carbon footprint of air travel. - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Dec 12) |
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Dec 12 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections As a child, Todd Smith dreamed of flying planes. And he fulfilled that dream, becoming a commercial pilot. Smith: “I loved the feeling of being up in the sky and both the tranquility and the vastness of … looking down at our beautiful planet.” But when a medical issue forced him to take a break from work, he visited Rainbow Mountain in Peru. The colorful slopes have become visible because they’re no longer covered with snow. That made Smith worry about global warming and burning fossil fuels for transportation. Smith: “Knowing that my ... Read more ... |
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More than a dozen Illinois schools add EVs to driver’s ed - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Dec 4) |
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Dec 4 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections Teenagers at some Illinois high schools are now taking driver’s education classes in electric cars. Mitchell: “EVs are the future. I mean, it’s something we can get these kids ready to use.” Gregg Mitchell is the driver’s ed director at Lane Tech College Prep, a public high school in Chicago. The school recently added an EV to its fleet of cars, using a grant from ComEd, the local electric utility. The utility’s EVs for Education program has allowed more than a dozen schools to buy electric cars and chargers for their driver’s ed ... Read more ... |
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Could your library do this? A California library is helping people try e-bikes for free - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Nov 29) |
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Nov 29 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections Libraries lend out a lot more than books and DVDs. Some loan tools or museum passes. And at the public library in Santa Barbara, California, visitors can borrow a weeklong membership to the city’s electric bike share program. Bilek: “The goal is to give people in the community a chance to try a form of alternative transportation, see if it might work for them.” That’s senior librarian Ariana Bilek. She says the library is partnering with BCycle, the city’s e-bike share program, and Bosch, an e-bike technology company, to introduce more ... Read more ... |
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Why one researcher is flying less - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Nov 24) |
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Nov 24 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections As a linguistics researcher, Ian Joo of South Korea is often asked to travel for research and conferences. But when he learned that taking one flight could cause more carbon pollution than the average citizen of Uganda emits in a year, he was appalled. Joo: “That was a big shock for me.” He decided to reduce his air travel. While he was a visiting researcher in the Netherlands, he attended four conferences. Joo: “For all those conferences, I took the train.” But he says sometimes flying is the only option and travel is critical ... Read more ... |
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Many cyclists want to keep biking even in winter, advocate says - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Nov 21) |
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Nov 21 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections Even when it’s cold and snowy, Dave Robertson hops on his bike to get around town. Robertson: “There’s no special equipment. It’s whatever clothes you’re wearing … put on a jacket, put on a pair of mitts and a hat, and get on your bike and go.” Robertson is the vice president of Bike Ottawa, a nonprofit group that advocates for bike-friendly infrastructure in Canada’s capital city. He says many cyclists want to keep riding in winter. It’s less expensive than driving a car and better for the climate. So he says it’s critical that cities keep ... Read more ... |
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Uber driver switches to EV, saves money - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Nov 20) |
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Nov 20 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections Wesley Johnson is an Uber driver in San Francisco. For years, he picked up passengers in his Mercedes. And he spent a lot on fuel. Johnson: “I was spending like $1,600, nothing less, a month, for gas.” Plus, he had to deal with the wear and tear on his car, which can be pricey. So when he heard that Uber and Hertz had partnered on a program to rent out electric vehicles to Uber drivers, Johnson was eager to give it a try. He’s one of about 50,000 U.S. drivers who have rented a Tesla through the program since it launched two years ago. Read more ... |
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Climate change could make air travel even worse - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Nov 13) |
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Nov 13 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections Flight delays and missed connections can turn a joyful holiday trip into a stressful fiasco. And these headaches may become more common as floods, heat waves, and storms grow more extreme. Paul Williams is a professor of atmospheric science at the University of Reading in the UK. Williams: “Climate change has many potential consequences for the future of flying.” For example, in September 2023, heavy rain caused hundreds of delays and cancellations at New York City airports. At La Guardia, a terminal flooded, forcing travelers to wade ... Read more ... |
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Want to live in a walkable, bikeable city? Follow these tips. - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Nov 13) |
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Nov 13 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections Transportation is the largest source of carbon pollution in the United States, and passenger cars, SUVs, and light-duty trucks account for more than half of all transportation emissions. If you want to reduce your climate impact, this can present a dilemma. Walking, biking, and public transportation are the most climate-friendly ways to get around, but cars rule the roads in most of the nation. So ditching your car might not seem realistic. “It’s a really entrenched problem that’s really hard to get out of. We built all of these roads and highways and ... Read more ... |
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How to cut the carbon footprint of your next flight - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Nov 3) |
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Nov 3 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections When booking holiday travel, you may notice that some sites such as Google Flights now provide an estimate of the carbon emissions caused by each flight. Rutherford: “So this is something I’m really excited about.” Dan Rutherford directs the Aviation and Marine programs at the International Council on Clean Transportation. He says the climate impact of various flights can vary dramatically, depending on if a flight is direct, how new the plane is, the business model of the airline, and other factors. Rutherford: “In our ... Read more ... |
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Meet the former pilot working to reduce climate pollution from planes - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Nov 3) |
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Nov 3 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections Todd Smith always wanted to fly. But shortly after becoming a pilot and achieving his lifelong dream, he fell ill. During his required time off, he learned about the consequences of climate change and how the airline industry is a major polluter. So Smith cofounded Safe Landing, an organization for current and former airline employees who want to protect the climate and safeguard jobs for industry workers. Yale Climate Connections talked with Smith about his journey and about how airline workers are pushing for a cleaner industry. Yale Climate ... Read more ... |
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American society wasn’t always so car-centric. Our future doesn’t have to be, either. - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Oct 03, 2023) |
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Oct 03, 2023 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections Transportation is the largest source of planet-warming gases in the United States, and passenger vehicles are the top emitters within the sector. To reduce car emissions, authorities ranging from the UN to the U.S. EPA and Department of Transportation say that people need to drive less. But this message is often lost in the excitement over electric vehicles, which overwhelmingly dominate the conversation about decarbonizing ground transportation. The heavy emphasis on car-based climate solutions seems grounded in the assumption that driving is the only ... Read more ... |
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Electric vehicles reduce carbon pollution in all U.S. states - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Sep 14, 2023) |
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Sep 14, 2023 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections Cars and trucks are among the largest sources of climate-warming pollution in the U.S., accounting for around 23% of national emissions in 2021. Electric vehicles, along with strategies to reduce driving, are central to reducing that pollution. But do EVs really lower carbon emissions, even when the electricity feeding the car comes from heavily polluting sources? (Looking at you, West Virginia.) The answer – thankfully – is a resounding yes. Compared to gasoline-powered vehicles, electric cars emit substantially less carbon dioxide pollution, no ... Read more ... |
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What it’s like to road-trip cross-country in an electric car - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Jul 10, 2023) |
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Jul 10, 2023 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections Earlier this year, Glen Ayers and his wife Mary drove their electric car from Massachusetts to California and back, stopping at parks and small towns across the country. Ayers says going such a long distance in an EV was not difficult. Knowing where to charge up required a bit of planning, but he says they were able to plug in at campgrounds and stations along the way. “If you’re driving on the interstates, pretty much every 30 to 50 miles, there’s a fast charger,” he says. Ayers says this was a noticeable increase from a few years ... Read more ... |
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Electric vehicle incentives for 'gasoline superusers’ would have outsized benefits for the climate - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (May 30, 2023) |
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May 30, 2023 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections In the U.S., a small percentage of drivers produce a disproportionate amount of global warming pollution. “The top 10% of drivers in terms of their gasoline consumption were using about a third of all the gasoline,” says Janelle London of Coltura, a nonprofit that advocates for electric vehicle adoption. Her team analyzed nationwide data about people’s driving habits. She says many so-called gasoline superusers drive a lot because they have to. “They are generally people who are having to commute long distances because they can’t ... Read more ... |
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EPA’s car pollution rules would save Americans trillions of dollars - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (May 08, 2023) |
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May 08, 2023 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections Electric vehicle (EV) sales are surging in many countries around the world, including the United States. According to the Department of Energy, EVs accounted for just 1% of new U.S. car sales in 2017. That share surpassed 3% in 2021 and approached 6% in 2022. Though the U.S. remains well below the global average EV share of new car sales, which exceeded 14% in 2022, the American market is catching up fast. According to an analysis of global markets by Bloomberg, a 5% share appears to be a tipping point at which EV sales take off in most countries. Amid ... Read more ... |
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Walmart just illustrated how mainstream EVs are now - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (May 04, 2023) |
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May 04, 2023 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections In the latest sign that corporate behemoths are getting behind the shift to electric vehicles, Walmart announced on Thursday that it would install fast-charging stations at thousands of locations around the country. The rollout would quadruple the company’s network of charging stations, currently available at more than 280 Walmart and Sam’s Club stores. Walmart’s move could help allay a common concern about buying an electric car - range anxiety, the fear of getting stranded with a dead battery and no chargers in sight. “We’ve got a Walmart store or ... Read more ... |
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More clean transportation options are coming to South Los Angeles - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Apr 13, 2023) |
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Apr 13, 2023 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections The lack of reliable transportation can be a major challenge in people’s lives. “Transit really provides access to education, job opportunities, and child care,” says Stephanie Ramirez of the South Los Angeles Transit Empowerment Zone. She says South LA has high rates of poverty and many people who rely on public transit to get to jobs and school. But buses do not go everywhere. And some roads lack sidewalks and bike lanes. It’s also an area long burdened by air pollution from truck traffic and industry. So her group is partnering on ... Read more ... |
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Picture book helps kids learn about the downsides of gasoline - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Apr 07, 2023) |
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Apr 07, 2023 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections When vehicles burn fossil fuels, they create carbon pollution that warms the planet and other air pollutants that harm people’s health. Kids today will inherit these problems, so Janelle London wants them to know about the risks of burning gasoline and the alternatives. “We looked and looked and there was no children’s storybook about gasoline at all. And so we decided it was time to write one,” she says. London works for the nonprofit Coltura, which advocates for phasing out gasoline by the year 2040. She and her colleague Matthew ... Read more ... |
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Diesel buses harm the environment. These El Paso school districts are going electric. - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Apr 04, 2023) |
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Apr 04, 2023 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections This story was co-published with El Paso Matters as part of Next City’s joint Equitable Cities Reporting Fellowship For Borderland Narratives. In 1939, bright yellow buses became the symbol for students traveling to school. Today, the buses alleviate traffic congestion while taking millions of children to school daily. But most of them are powered by diesel, which harms the environment and could impact the health of the students riding them. In cities across the U.S., school districts are beginning to change the vehicles they use to ... Read more ... |
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'Free’ employee parking is actually costing the climate and commuters - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Apr 03, 2023) |
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Apr 03, 2023 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections Many businesses pay for space in a garage or lot so employees can park near the office. But Allen Greenberg of the Federal Highway Administration says when employers provide free parking, it comes at a cost to the climate and other commuters. “They are encouraging employees to drive to work in congested cities and largely to block buses filled with low-income workers who are also trying to get to work, who are using the infrastructure much more efficiently,” he says. So some places such as Washington, D.C., and California now have what are ... Read more ... |
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Electric vehicle rebates and tax credits often favor higher-income people - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Feb 28, 2023) |
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Feb 28, 2023 · Stay in the know about climate impacts and solutions. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Yale Climate Connections Rebates and tax credits can make it more affordable to buy an electric vehicle. But Debra Gore-Mann of the Greenlining Institute says these incentives often favor higher-income people. For example, with many rebates, you have to front the money that will later be refunded. “So that actually is really conducive to more wealthier people,” she says. “You can float the money, so it’s not such a big deal for you. You can wait for it to come in the mail.” In a recent report, her group identified ways to make electric vehicle incentives more ... Read more ... |
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New solar-powered car designed to travel up to 40 miles on sunshine alone - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Dec 06, 2022) |
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Dec 06, 2022 · Yale Climate Connections Soon, some electric vehicle drivers will be able to run errands and then power up their vehicles without plugging in. They’ll just need sunshine. Steve Fambro is co-founder of Aptera Motors Corp. His team created a three-wheeled electric vehicle with built-in solar cells that provide enough energy to cover many people’s daily driving needs. “It’ll operate like a normal electric vehicle,” he says. “But all the while, you’ve got this imaginary extension cord that’s charging you up - 20, 30, 40 miles a day in some places.” The vehicle, which is slated to go into production next year, looks like something out of a sci-fi ... Read more ... |
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Don’t get fooled: Electric vehicles really are better for the climate - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Nov 06, 2022) |
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Nov 06, 2022 · Join the Yale Center for Environmental Communication for a webinar on November 4, at 12 p.m. EDT. Panelists will discuss the health and community impacts of more frequent and large wildfires. The conversation will be moderated by Dr. Kai Chen, Yale School of Public Health. Yale Climate Connections You may have heard the myth that electric vehicles are just as bad for the climate - or worse - than gas-powered cars and trucks. One common myth claims that the climate-warming pollution caused by manufacturing electric vehicle batteries cancels out the benefits. Not so. Electric vehicles, often called EVs, are responsible for less global-warming pollution over their ... Read more ... |
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Titanium dioxide coating could keep roads and bike paths cooler - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Oct 18, 2022) |
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Oct 18, 2022 · Join the Yale Center for Environmental Communication for a webinar on November 4, at 12 p.m. EDT. Panelists will discuss the health and community impacts of more frequent and large wildfires. The conversation will be moderated by Dr. Kai Chen, Yale School of Public Health. Yale Climate Connections Biking or walking on a hot day can make you feel like you’re in an oven because dark pavement absorbs and retains heat. But applying a special coating to streets and bike paths could help cool them off. Nicole Iroz-Elardo is an urban planning and public health researcher. She’s part of a University of Arizona-led team that’s testing a product made with titanium ... Read more ... |
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Seattle utility aims to make electric vehicle charging more accessible - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Sep 09, 2022) |
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Sep 09, 2022 · Yale Climate Connections Many city residents want an electric vehicle. But they hesitate to buy one because they do not have anywhere to install a charger. Jacob Orenberg is with Seattle City Light. The electric utility is piloting a program that will provide these residents with EV charging on the street. “The city of Seattle is a relatively older city for the West Coast. And many of our neighborhoods were built before the mid-20th century when the automobile became dominant,” he says. “And so many of the homes there don’t have driveways or garages. We are also a relatively dense city with many apartments and condominiums. And residents of those buildings ... Read more ... |
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Electrifying transportation reduces emissions AND saves massive amounts of energy - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Aug 07, 2022) |
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Aug 07, 2022 · Yale Climate Connections With high energy prices and increasing urgency to reduce fossil fuel burning, it makes sense to get the most out of every gallon of gasoline or kilowatt-hour of electricity. A previous post showed that charging an EV costs around $1.41 per gallon in the U.S., offering consumers a major savings over gasoline. Part of why EVs are cheap to operate is that they use energy with impressive efficiency. Delving deeper, there’s a stark difference between the way internal combustion and electric engines use energy. The bad news is that combustion engines are fundamentally inefficient. But the good news is that electric motors offer vast improvements ... Read more ... |
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The mustard seed that can fuel airplanes - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Jul 26, 2022) |
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Jul 26, 2022 · Yale Climate Connections An Ethiopian mustard plant called carinata has been attracting attention, not for its culinary use, but because its seeds can be used to create a more climate-friendly jet fuel. “It has high oil content, high lipid content,” says Farhad Masum of Argonne National Laboratory. “You can refine that oil in a bio-refinery to make sustainable aviation fuel, which can replace conventional aviation fuel.” Masum says carinata fuel is a particularly promising biofuel - partly because of where and when carinata can be grown. “Carinata is a winter crop,” he says. “You can plant it in the Florida Panhandle or in south Georgia around ... Read more ... |
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Meet the woman electrifying her Jeep Wrangler - Yale Climate Connections - Transportation  (Jul 11, 2022) |
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Jul 11, 2022 · Yale Climate Connections Veronika Wright grew up in Austria watching the American TV show “The Gilmore Girls” and dreaming of driving a tan Jeep Wrangler like Lorelai Gilmore. Now Wright lives in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and is the proud owner of her dream vehicle. But she’s working to make it better than Lorelai’s. She and her husband are converting the Jeep to run on electricity. Wright has a Ph.D. in physics and used to work as a battery simulation engineer. “This really was a lot of fun, and I got very, very passionate about batteries,” she says. She wanted to apply her technical knowledge to a hands-on project and share her enthusiasm for electric ... Read more ... |
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