Future Pathways for Green Vehicle Technology

Academics, researchers, politicians and other interested stakeholders have been debating the mass introduction of alternatively fuelled (AFV) and low emission vehicles (LEV) since the 1970s. Interest in alternative technologies first came about as a result of both the two oil shocks around this time (making the internal combustion engine (ICE) appear less attractive as a vehicle powertrain) and increased awareness of the environmental consequences of the current automobile culture. It can be easy to conclude that all of this work has come to naught. A quick look out the window confirms that ICE powered vehicles are still by far the dominant way we go about our personal mobility. Perhaps this is due to the relative calm in the international oil markets over the 80s, 90s and early 2000s and the ICE has come a long way to decreasing its local pollution emissions (such as particulate matter, nitrous and sulphur oxides etc.) but carbon emissions have seen a much more muted improvement.

The focus has shifted in recent years from a local pollution to an international pollution prospective. In the developed world we have mostly addressed the challenge of local pollution (by outsourcing our dirty industry to less developed countries). The next hurdle is to address the problems of anthropogenic climate change of which transport contributes over a quarter in the developed world. One thing is clear (in my view), in the medium and long term we will have to move away from a system dependent on oil to power individual ICE if we have any hope of meeting the goals we have recently set ourselves (see the UK Climate Change Bill).

The Toyota Crisis and its Ramifications for LEVs

Over the last few weeks a story has broken that has the potential to pull down the biggest automotive firm in the World. Toyota has recently admitted a technical fault in some of its vehicles that interferes with the operation of the accelerator. Some Toyota drivers have stated their vehicles accelerator pedal becoming stuck down causing the vehicle to speed out of control. A number of car accidents in the US have been attributed to this default.

The company’s response to the allegations of technical malfunctions has been somewhat sporadic and less than confident in nature. A solid position on this issue was not initially forthcoming leading some speculators to question Toyota’s crisis management abilities. Toyota has now ordered an international recall of all affected vehicles and will be working with the DVLA in the UK in order to get in touch with all drivers in the UK operating a potentially faulty vehicle. I imagine that any Toyota driver is well aware of the situation and that they will have attempted to get in touch with Toyota long before the corporate engine finally engaged in an attempt to resolve the situation.

The Potential of Low Emissions Zone and Their Impact onto Vehicle Purchasing Behaviour

The idea of zoning in geography and planning is not a new concept and has been utilised for a variety of purposes over the years. Zoning involves the application of land use regulation in order to achieve a desired output related to the activities that take place in a certain area. A zone can relate to, for example, a park/green space open area or a hospital complex, each with its own unique purpose for the designated area and usually with a set of unique regulations attached to the use of the area. In economics/business the application of zones can be seen in the business parks that now are prevalent in most of our urban areas or the export processing zones that many of our large corporations have taken advantage of in developing nations.

In regards to integrated transport, zoning is often used in urban environments to manage the demands that personal and commercial transport places onto certain areas. These areas are often selected dependent on the level of transport loading that is present, with the areas suffering from high levels of loading being earmarked for zoning and regulation. In the UK, Clear Zones have been used in the past (such as in the Quayside development of Newcastle/Gateshead) to improve public transport, decrease congestion and noise and increase public enjoyment of certain communal areas. The recent (over the last 5 to 10 years) redevelopment of many urban city centres in the UK has provided urban planners with a unique opportunity to apply the most advanced theories in the subject in order to ensure the success of the city centre for the coming years.

Government Owned Auto Firms and Their Environmental Direction

The recent economic recession has affected both consumers and producers across the world. Output in some exporting economies decreased by upwards of 40% (such as in Japan) whilst unemployment has increased in some instances beyond the 10% band (such as in the US). Large consumer goods have been affected disproportionately as consumers hedge their bets in relation to expensive purchases. This has seen sales in the automotive sector decrease substantially in the financial year 2008/09. In order to alleviate this slump national governments have intervened within the market in an attempt to boost demand. Government backed initiatives such as the scrappage scheme have allowed consumers to receive a cash deduction on the purchase of a new vehicle when trading in their old car (if that car is over 10 years old in the instance of the UK). In the UK £300m was initially allocated to this scheme and has been further extended by another £100m due to popularity.

Within the US automotive industry there is considerations for all of the concerns outlined above. Manufacturing output is a key part of the overall US economy especially in the large consumer goods section. This industry also directly employs a large proportion of the workforce (over 1 million automotive workers in 2005) and has strong indirect employment links to related sectors. This creates the situation where the industry has an important place within national policy and political consideration. Furthermore, the industry also possesses important cultural and symbolic meaning for many US citizens who see their automotive firms as champions of US economic power, ingenuity and integrity.

Reforming Fuel Duty

The Green Fiscal Commission was a policy think tank established in 2007 to investigate the case for reforming the UK taxation system to reflect a more green position. They published their final report late last year which included a host of useful policy recommendations to the UK government. These policy recommendations were closely linked to the requirement for the UK to reduce its carbon emissions in line with the target budgets outlined in the Climate Change Bill. The commission argued the case that the vast amount of these carbon reductions could be generated by reforming the taxation system to increase tax on polluting activities (public bads) whilst decreasing tax on public goods such as employment to ensure fiscal neutrality.

I enjoyed reading about their suggestions and I believe that the case they put forward is both valid and required. In order to alter consumer and industry behaviour to reflect the environmental damage these activity generates it is crucial that this damage is incorporated into the price of goods and services produced and consumed. The public and industry may state a high level of concern for the environment but in order to ensure this concern is translated into action one of the best methods is to increase the price of activities that create this environmental impact.

Road Trains

An idea that originally grabbed my attention some months ago concerned the research being undertaken by the Safe Road Trains for the Environment (SATRE – funded by the EU) which investigated the prospect of automated vehicle motorway transport. This concept involved the creation of “Road Trains” on Europe’s motorways that allowed vehicle drivers to join a convoy, manoeuvred by a lead driver, and stop manually automating their individual car and be directed by the operations of the lead driver. This would allow the convoy driver to partake in other activities such as reading or sleeping.

Road Trains are currently undergoing further research and testing but a European implementation of 2011 has been touted. The research, that has so far been conducted, highlights a number of advantages. Firstly, convoy drivers will benefit from an average 20% reduction in fuel use due to the slipstream effect often employed by professional cyclists. This will directly reduce the carbon intensity of the journey for a convoy vehicle. The first question that comes to me is will the lead driver be professionally employed to conduct this operation or simply another motorway driver who is also undertaking a long haul journey? My inclination is that it must be a professional driver and thus, keeping in mind the supposed fuel/carbon benefits, the Road Trains will have to average a convoy of at least 5 cars (if we assume the cars are comparable with fuel/carbon efficiency) to outweigh the operation of the lead vehicle.

Renault Zero Emissions Series

Following on from my previous post discussing clean technology being showcased in Copenhagen I have done some further investigation into the new range of zero emissions vehicles being developed by Renault. The Z.E series was first outlined by Renault in 2008 and will include 4 unique vehicle designs to suit different consumer needs. Consumers will be able to choose from the two seat Twizy aimed at the young urban market who require compact and affordable transport, the Kangoo aimed at the smalle business market providing a small commercial transport solution and finally the two differing saloon options the Zoe (compact) and Fluence (family).

This development by Renault shows the first real shift by any major automotive firm in Europe to produce, not just a one off, but a spectrum of zero emissions vehicles. All the vehicles in the Z.E range will be fuelled by an electric Lithium-Ion battery pack. Renault has also teamed up with Better Place to develop and implement battery exchange stations. These stations will dispel the reservations of most conventional vehicle drivers concerning the range issue of electric vehicles. An automated system will remove the depleted battery pack and substitute it with a fully charged replacement with the entire process taking a few minutes. Before this design innovation, electric vehicle batteries were recharged by an electric outlet with refuel times upwards of 8 hours.