By: Chandu Visweswariah I can hear the jokes already. “Mom would wait for a half hour at what they called ‘super’ chargers in those days!” “Grandpa would carefully program his EV to charge up to 80%, and it took all night to get there!” Ever since the advent of the first rechargeable lithium-ion battery in the mid ’80s, the pace…
By: Chandu Visweswariah Executive Summary The dire, urgent and existential climate crisis we face is well-understood, with a concomitant desire to reduce Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions from transportation. California has replaced nearly 65% of its diesel consumption with Renewable Diesel (RD). UPS has been transitioning a significant share of its nationwide fleet to RD. New York City now uses RD…
By: Subbu Upputuri, Dr. Chandu Visweswariah, Dr. Thomas N. Theis, Dr. Anjali Sauthoff Executive Summary The transition from fossil fuel vehicles to electric alternatives is a critical step towards reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and combating climate change. However, the localized impacts on air quality, specifically fine particulate matter (PM2.5) emissions, are more nuanced. In some electricity zones of the…
By: Dr. Anjali Sauthoff, Dr. Chandu Visweswariah, Dr. Thomas N. Theis Authors’ note: The CURE100 Carbon Tracker tool, available here, now has full support in the latest version 288 for PM2.5 (Particulate Matter 2.5 microns or smaller) emissions and implements the models described in this article for light duty vehicles. The CURE100 BEST (Bus Electrification for Student Transportation) tool, available…
By: Chandu Visweswariah I’ve been asked by multiple friends and relatives what it’s like to drive an EV in frigid weather. I usually reply that the combination of a heavier car, low center of gravity, high torque at slow speeds, and four-wheel drive is an unbeatable combination in snowy and icy conditions. In fact, given that our driveway is steep,…
By: Patty L. Buchanan The seasonal eco-grief that comes with school bus purchasing plans has, once again, set in. The stark truth is that the Croton School District continues to fall 70% behind the needed pace to meet NY State law and globally needed reduction in transportation greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The implications are best described by António Guterres, U.N….
By: Patty L. Buchanan Do you want to advocate for an electric school bus (ESB) in your local School District? You may find the story of how tiny Croton on Hudson, NY got its first ESB instructional. Success is achieved by unflinching advocacy. Here in Croton, our two-and-a-half-year campaign spanning three school budget cycles, by all-volunteer efforts to electrify the…
By: Chandu Visweswariah Congratulations to all residents of the Croton Harmon School District in New York! In the recent May 18 budget vote, you chose electric buses overwhelmingly over fossil fuel buses. The three electric bus propositions collectively received a 73.7% approval. For those who recall, we also had a Proposition 1 for two fossil fuel buses, and the three…
