Oregon temporarily suspends EV rebate programme
The US state of Oregon will put its ‘Oregon Clean Vehicle Rebate Program’ on ice from 1 May, citing high demand. According to projections, the funds available will be depleted by then.
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California keeps pushing for 100% zero-emissions trucks by 2045
California will have cleaner air than the rest of the US sooner. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is about to greenlight plans allowing the state to phase out diesel trucks earlier than the rest of the United States and introduce stricter emission regulations.
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Oshkosh is developing all-electric waste trucks
US waste disposal company Republic Services announces a long-term deal with Oshkosh Corporation. It will start with two electric recycling and waste truck prototypes this autumn and expects EVs to represent half of its new truck purchases in the next five years.
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Arcimoto halts production due to finance issues
US company Arcimoto says it has stopped production of its electric three-wheeled vehicles and may have to seek bankruptcy protection from creditors if it can’t raise more money to fund operations.
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Canada issues regulations for the phase out of combustion vehicles
The Canadian government is now officially launching regulations to implement its goal of allowing only zero-emission passenger cars and light commercial vehicles to be sold in the country from 2035. Initially, an EV quota of at least 20 per cent will be mandated from 2026.
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Daimler presents eCascadia for North America
Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA) has now presented the production version of its battery-electric truck model Freightliner eCascadia. Production is set to start later this year at Freightliner’s factory in Portland, Oregon. Freightliner has received around 700 orders for the electric truck so far.
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TriMet orders first electric buses from Gillig to join Portland fleet
In Portland, Oregon, public transportation provider TriMet will purchase 24 battery-electric buses from California-based bus manufacturer Gillig. This is the first time TriMet has bought e-buses, yet the operator has fairly ambitious targets.
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Oregon doubles PEV rebates for lower-income households
The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality has changed the state’s Clean Vehicle Rebate Program. Low- and moderate-income households may now claim double the money, i.e. $5,000, to purchase or lease a new or used battery electric or plug-in hybrid vehicle.
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Tritium to deploy over 500 DC-chargers for EVCS network
EVCS has turned to Tritium to expand the EV charging network along the US West Coast. EVCS will purchase over 400 Tritium fast-chargers to add to its more than 100 Tritium charger deployment.
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Electra Meccanica launches first deliveries of the ‘Solo’
Canadian company Electra Meccanica has commenced the first commercial deliveries of its single-seat Solo electric vehicle as part of an unveiling event held in Los Angeles, California on 4 October. Electra Meccanica will continue to ramp production with investor and manufacturing partner Zongshen Industrial Group.
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19 New Flyer electric buses for Oregon
New Flyer has announced an additional order from Oregon’s Lane Transit District (LTD) for 19 battery-electric transit buses and associated charging infrastructure.
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Rocsys opens new US office in Portland
The Dutch EV robotic charging solution specialist Rocsys has announced the opening of a new office in the United States. This will help pave the way towards building business in the continental Americas.
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Arcimoto found 5x larger production base in Oregon
Arcimoto, which makes funky electric trikes, has announced that it has agreed to purchase a new manufacturing site in Eugene, Oregon. Spanning over 185,000 square feet (about 17,187 sqm), the new factory is more than five times as large as Arcimoto’s current production facilities.
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First Model Y to be delivered on Friday
The first Tesla Model Y will be delivered on this coming Friday 13 March. Only deliveries to customers on the US West Coast have been announced so far. The company has obviously sped things up, since until now, 15 March was said to be the earliest possible date for delivery.
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US states develop action plan to electrify trucks & buses
California is joining with seven other US American states to develop an action plan to put “hundreds of thousands” more emissions-free trucks and buses on roads and highways. The California Air Resources Board announced the initiative.
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Tesla is on fire
Media outlets tend to be very quick to report mishaps related to EVs or charging stations, particularly if they belong to high profile companies such as Tesla. Often, it later turns out that the “accident” was caused by third parties.
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Flixbus is testing long haul electric buses in California
In California, Flixbus has tested America’s first purely battery-powered long-distance bus. The MCI D45 CRTe LE CHARGE from Motor Coach Industries (MCI) completed its first test with a round trip from San Francisco to Sacramento.
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USA: Daimler prepares serial electric truck production
Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA) announced its plan to convert their Portland plant in Oregon for the production of electric trucks under Freightliner banner next year. Serial production of the eM2 and eCascadia models is set to start in 2021.
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Arcimoto’s electric Rapid Responder to save lives
Arcimoto has announced that it will test its fully electric trike, the Rapid Responder, in pilot programs in Oregon and California. The vehicle was originally released as a fun utility vehicle (FUV), and will now be outfitted for first resonders and law enforcement.
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USA: Daimler Trucks preparing real-life trials in fleets
The two all-electric trucks Daimler dedicated to the U.S. market are about to take up real-life testing at selected clients based in California and the Pacific North West. In preparation of production in 2021, Daimler also installed the Electric Vehicle Council to share their insights from the trials.
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Airbus tests with flying electric cab Vahana successful
Airbus has completed the first real-air test with its electric VTOL Vahana. The self-flying aircraft reached a height of 5 metres for almost a minute in Oregon. On top, Airbus found a new partner for propulsion in MAGicAll.
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Arcimoto starts delivering its electric trike
U.S. manufacturer Arcimoto has handed over the first model of its serial version three-wheeled EV called SRK on the sidelines of the LA Auto Show. The base version of the SRK reaches up to 100 km, a more performant version up to 200 km.
Read moreHamburg, Smart Bridge, Oregon, Innogy.
Smart City: While Hamburg did not exactly act intelligently during the riots surrounding the G20 meeting, it wants to get ready for an electric future and decided to test 100 autonomous shuttles from next year. The partnership between the town and Deutsche Bahn is dubbed Smart City and focuses on transport to and from stations and bookings via app. With VW’s MOIA and Hamburg Hochbahn also looking to introduce electric shuttles, 200 even, the roads may soon run ripe with autonomous mini buses.
handelsblatt.com (in German)
Bridge technology: The world’s longest sea bridge that will connect China with Hong Kong and Macao upon completion later this year, will also include an artificial island built for 550 EV charging stations. It’s an investment of 90m yuan (13m dollars) from China Southern Power Grid that said the stations will be available to different kind of electric vehicles including buses and taxis. The 429 DC charging stations and 121 AC charging stations will be opened at the end of 2017.
auto.ndtv.com, thestandard.com.hk
Oregon favours EVs: The Oregon House approved a 5.3bn dollar, 10-year transport funding package that includes plug-in vehicle incentives of 2,500 dollars. Lower income earners that also got a 20 year old car to scrap can get double that incentive, which comes into force from 2018 with applications open now.
insideevs.com
Innogy clears another hurdle to enter into the U.S. market as it receives the UL certificates from Underwriters Laboratories for its charging equipment. This means the path is clear for its newly formed subsidiary to operate in the States.
presseportal.de (in German)
Vienna, Maven Gig, Oregon, Fremont, Swindon.
Self-driving shuttles in Vienna: If someone has mastered the sweet life, it is the Austrian capital and so it may not come as a surprise that its public transport may soon be autonomous and electric. From 2018, Wiener Linien wants to try out two mini buses from French Navya, with up to eleven real passengers. The pilot ‘auto.Bus Seestadt’ is supported by AIT (Austrian Institute of Technology), TÜV Austria and Siemens AG Österreich as well as traffic safety institutions. If no major disruptions occur, the shuttles will enter service from 2019.
orf.at (in German)
GM embraces Gig Economy: Maven Gig is a new option for GM’s car sharing service. It now allows users to hire a Bolt for 229 dollars a week and to use it to pick up passengers through Uber, Lyft and other hail-ride apps. San Diego is the first testing ground before Maven Gig will move on to congest Los Angeles and San Francisco later this year.
carscoops.com
EV sales incentives: Oregon may pay car dealers 250 dollars per electric car they sell to residents of the state. The bill under consideration would set aside a 1m dollar fund.
chargedevs.com
Home to Tesla, the City of Fremont decided to require solar panels and EV charging wiring for all new housing developments. California aims to to have homes built to a “zero net energy” level by 2020.
eastbaytimes.com
Swindon tries hydrogen: Two Toyota Mirais and one Hyundai iX35 have been delivered to three businesses in Swindon. They build a car pool for employees of Arval, Nationwide and The National Trust as part of the town’s Hydrogen Hub project.
fleetnews.co.uk
Nissan + BMW, India, H2 Logic, Oregon, Autohom.
Nissan-BMW charging alliance: The two auto makers are working together in building up fast-charging infrastructure in the U.S. Some 120 locations have reportedly been fitted with 50 kW DC-chargers. CCS and CHAdeMO exist there side by side. No wonder that other countries are longingly looking at America…
bmwblog.com
Indian e-bus: The country has presented its first retrofitted electric bus, which previously sported a diesel engine. By March, another ten diesel buses will be converted within the scope of a new pilot project.
economictimes, netindian.in
H2 stations in Denmark: H2 Logic already received its fourth order for a hydrogen filling station from Danish Hydrigen Fuel (DHF). Starting 2016, the latter wants to operate five H2-fuelling stations across the country. The newest order was for the city of Esbjerg.
businesswire.com
Oregon wants incentives: On the website Change.org, there is currently a petition under way, with Oregon residents demanding a 2,500 dollar sales incentive when purchasing an EV or plug-in hybrid. The U.S. state offers only a 25 percent tax credit for the installation of charging stations.
change.org via cleantechnica.com
Ten e-Mercedes for York: Leasing and rental firm Autohom has added ten Mercedes B-class Electric Drive to its fleet in the city of York. The company continues to go green(er), having already installed six charge points and owning plug-in hybrid cars.
fleetnews.co.uk
Berlin, Oregon, Nottingham, Autohorn, Dubai.
The “Berliner Modell” from now on will serve as blue print for all EV charging stations to be installed in the German capital from July 2016. The first of its kind has now been inaugurated. The design is uniform, energy comes from renewables and the stations can be operated with a charge card by The New Motion that works regardless of the provider.
stadtentwicklung.berlin.de, be-emobil.de (both in German)
EV incentives in Oregon? The state officials are thinking about a bill that would offer EV buyers a so-called “cash on the hood” incentive of up to 3,000 dollars. Hybrid vehicles would become eligible for a 1,500-dollar grant. Legislation could start this October and would be in effect until 2022.
greencarreports.com
Nottingham is pondering a low-emission zone, at least for heavy vehicles. Furthermore, the city proposed a network of EV charge spots as well as incentives for rental EVs and local businesses to go electric. All would be part of Nottingham’s bid for the government’s Go Ultra Low initiative.
nottinghampost.com
Toyota hybrids in York: Rental and leasing provider Autohorn from York has placed an order for more than 60 Toyotas, including the Yaris Hybrid and for the first time also the Prius Plug-in. The company has bought nearly 200 Toyota hybrids in the past three years.
fleetnews.co.uk
Toyota PHEVs for Dubai: Al-Futtaim Motors, exclusive distributor of Toyota in the UAE, has handed over three Toyota Prius PHEV to Dubai Municipality. The latter will test the cars to see if more could be bought to join the fleet in the future.
albawaba.com, automiddleeast.com
Daimler, Florence, Oregon, Brasilia.
eDriversLicense: Daimler will work with five driving schools in and around Stuttgart, proving them with an electric Smart and a B-series ED as well as a wallbox. Learners will be given their first lessons in an electric car, receiving an eDriverLicence which enables them to use Daimler’s car2go car sharing service with a 100-minute free access. The programme will also offer EV training for existing drivers.
electriccarsreport.com, greencarcongress.com l, evfleetworld.co.uk
Florence goes electric: Renault has delivered a total of 70 EVs (53 Twizy and 17 Kangoo Z.E.) to the Italian city, whose fleet is now 60 percent all-electric. Moreover, 91 new EV charging points will be installed at municipal offices across Florence.
evfleetworld.co.uk
Fighting the ICE: The U.S. state of Oregon announced that it wants to fine petrol-powered vehicles blocking a charging station up to 250 dollars. Washington state has already started a similar measure.
nwpr.org
Intelligent Mobility: Since the end of March, the UN has taken two Renault Zoe into service in Brasilia. The programme called Mobi-i will analyse the feasibility and pros of using electric vehicles in the Brazilian capital.
brasilnews.de, emobilitaetonline.de (articles in German), brasil.gov.br (in Portuguese)
UK, Electric Highway, Budapest, DoE, Oregon.
British government plugs in: The UK government yesterday announced the purchase of 140 ultra-low emission vehicles as part of a five million pound investment scheme. The all-electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles will be used by 15 government departments and agencies.
clickgreen.org.uk, gov.uk
Electric Highway update: Operator Ecotricity announced that the about 50 AC chargers currently out of order will be serviced in the coming months. Ecotricity also plans on doubling charge points at current locations and expanding along “A-routes.” Moreover, the company is working on an app to show the availability of chargers in real-time.
autovolt-magazine.com, transportevolved.com
E-bus in Hungary: An eight metre long electric bus by Hungarian manufacturer Evopro has gone into service in Budapest. It is still a prototype called Medio Electric and is a first step toward the country’s goal of becoming a leader in the electric bus market in Central Europe.
hungarytoday.hu
DoE funds EV acceptance: The U.S. Department of Energy earmarked 6 million dollars for a total of 11 projects aimed at improving potential buyers’ experiences with alternative fuel and plug-in electric vehicles. The so-called Clean Cities programme will focus on the areas of “on-the-road demonstrations, safety-related training, and emergency preparedness.”
greencarcongress.com
EV drivers asked to loosen purse strings: Starting in July, Oregon will become the first state in the U.S. to collect road fees based on miles driven instead of a state tax added to petrol prices. The reason is the increasing number of electric and hybrid vehicles on the road that will now have to pay up as well.
hybridcars.com
BMW ActiveAssist, Porsche 918 Spyder, Oregon.
Video tip I: CNet tested BMW’s ActiveAssist technology at the CES in Las Vegas. Activated by a smart watch, the i3 finds itself a space to park and can simply be called back when the driver wishes to be picked up. At the show, the whole process worked most smoothly and scratch-free.
cnet.com
Video tip II: Porsche has issued a video showing the assembly of a 918 Spyder at its Zuffenhausen facility. The super sports car is limited to 918 units all of which are hand-built and now sold out. Indulge!
youtube.com via autoblog.com
Reading tip: Home sweet home is what most EV drivers in Oregon seem to think as they prefer home chargers over the public fast-chargers installed as part of the taxpayer-funded EV Project. The initiators blame wrong positioning as well as mixed public-private ownership of the charging spots.
seattletimes.com
E-bike regulations, Oregon, Events.
Download tip: Bike Europe has published a White Paper on EU e-bike regulations. A must-read for anyone in the pedelec, s-pedelec or e-bike business, be it designer or dealer.
bike-eu.com (free download after registration) via bike-eu.com
Reading tip: The best things in life are free could be the motto behind Oregon’s EV policy which does not believe in financial incentives but still has one of the highest EV adoption rates in the States. The key is properly positioned charging infrastructure.
transportevolved.com
Events for the upcoming week: Essen Motor Show (Nov 29 – Dec 7; Essen, Germany) ++ EEVC European Electric Vehicle Congress (Dec 2 – 5; Brussels, Belgium)
You can find a complete list of upcoming industry events at electrive.com/calendar