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Re: Bob2 reacts again Maybe you should look more closely at who from the agency actually said what...
Author: FUD
Date: 10-05-2019 - 23:04
The same arguments are made regarding light-duty EVs. Yes, they all cost too much for the amount of vehicle you're getting, but the argument always seems to be: it won't do everything for everybody, no matter how extreme the use case, so it's no good for anybody.
Well, at some point, they're good enough for normal use, if you can afford them: I'm waiting for 2018-19 Chevy Bolt used prices to come down into the low-mid $20Ks, for instance, at which point it makes sense for me to replace the oldest of my 2 cars with it because 200-250 miles of range covers well over 80% of my trips/days/needs, and there's a paid-off Prius in the garage for long trips. No, the Bolt wouldn't be my only car; it would, however, be my primary one.
San Francisco has used trolley buses for decades; Market Street Railway installed the first trolley bus routes in town almost 100 years ago. The buses have changed a bit over the years, and many if not most now have a traction battery (charged when on the wire) that's good for a mile or so off-wire, the same as the battery in their latest diesel-electric hybrids. Does that mean they're no good because they need wires, and because the battery's only good for a mile? Of course not; they're fine for the routes they're used on. Same goes for the hybrids (short battery range, but in a town the size of SF that's OK) and the battery-electrics (may not be able to cover all routes in a city, but can do a surprisingly large number of them). There's no law saying that every bus in town has to be identical. Nor every trolley, really: Sacramento has 3 types of light rail car, 2 of which are officially (but not perfectly) compatible, but all of which work best in single-model sets; somehow, they make it work.
ABQ may have decided, based on their test, that the current generation of Battery EBs isn't suitable for their system. They have the right to that decision. Their move was not necessarily toward diesel, though they're obviously considering it despite having CNG infrastructure. I'm not sure, but suspect that even Tier-4 diesel buses are still slightly cheaper at first cost than CNG. So I could see them going that way to meet their immediate need, and coming back to electrics later when they're better developed. That's OK. They have a bus line to run and passengers to carry.
Well, at some point, they're good enough for normal use, if you can afford them: I'm waiting for 2018-19 Chevy Bolt used prices to come down into the low-mid $20Ks, for instance, at which point it makes sense for me to replace the oldest of my 2 cars with it because 200-250 miles of range covers well over 80% of my trips/days/needs, and there's a paid-off Prius in the garage for long trips. No, the Bolt wouldn't be my only car; it would, however, be my primary one.
San Francisco has used trolley buses for decades; Market Street Railway installed the first trolley bus routes in town almost 100 years ago. The buses have changed a bit over the years, and many if not most now have a traction battery (charged when on the wire) that's good for a mile or so off-wire, the same as the battery in their latest diesel-electric hybrids. Does that mean they're no good because they need wires, and because the battery's only good for a mile? Of course not; they're fine for the routes they're used on. Same goes for the hybrids (short battery range, but in a town the size of SF that's OK) and the battery-electrics (may not be able to cover all routes in a city, but can do a surprisingly large number of them). There's no law saying that every bus in town has to be identical. Nor every trolley, really: Sacramento has 3 types of light rail car, 2 of which are officially (but not perfectly) compatible, but all of which work best in single-model sets; somehow, they make it work.
ABQ may have decided, based on their test, that the current generation of Battery EBs isn't suitable for their system. They have the right to that decision. Their move was not necessarily toward diesel, though they're obviously considering it despite having CNG infrastructure. I'm not sure, but suspect that even Tier-4 diesel buses are still slightly cheaper at first cost than CNG. So I could see them going that way to meet their immediate need, and coming back to electrics later when they're better developed. That's OK. They have a bus line to run and passengers to carry.
