electric vehicles

When does a fanciful concept of an electric commuter car actually become the real deal? Possibly only when the first few or the first few hundred start rolling off the assembly line. Nissan and Renault have been making the rounds of the auto shows showing off the robot-assisted electric Pivo 2, but last week the Associated Press reported that Portugal has agreed to set up a network of electric charging stations and the Pivo 2 is going to be released there in 2011. It's a bit hard to imagine this funky, funny-looking bug-like vehicle anywhere but in a Pixar movie.

"Laminated" lithium-ion battery
The Pivo 2 is reported to have four wheel-based engines and a robot ins...

Transport Infrastructure Will Change
With the i-MIEV electric car being rolled out sooner than expected and electric vehicles like the G-Wiz and Vectrix becoming ever-more common sights on our streets, it’s a good time to start figuring out what the transport infrastructure of the future will look like. Dale Vince of Ecotricity fame, who is h...

London Borough to Reverses Free Parking for EVs
No sooner do I report on the virus-like spread of electric vehicle charging points in London, that I hear from our friends at GoinGreen that at least one London borough is preparing to withdraw some of the privileges enjoyed by EV drivers:

Today saw the announcement of changes in the City of London's parking concessions for electric vehicles. Existing users of the borough's electric vehicle scheme will see an increase in on-street parking from zero to £50 per year wh...

My friend Carey is a single Portland, Oregon mom with a mortgage, a short commute to a full-time job and two school-age daughters. That translates to a fairly mainstream transportation need. She's also my choice for TreeHugger of the week because as of about two months ago she finally found a way to mothball her Honda and get off the gas roller coaster ride by buying a Zap three-wheeled electric vehicle.

Part of a personal transportation network
Carey is nothing if not pragmatic. She surveyed the small playing field. Of the five electric vehicles currently for sale, Zap seemed the...