From a climate perspective, electric vehicles possess huge advantages over internal combustion vehicles. If their “charge” comes from the conventional electric grid, their emissions are 50% lower; if coming from solar or wind sources, their carbon dioxide emissions are between 95-100% lower. They are simpler to produce, have fewer moving parts—meaning less maintenance—and don’t use fossil fuels. Project Drawdown ranks electric vehicles as the 26th best solution for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. According to a study by the Center for Behavior and the Environment, purchasing or using an electric vehicle for travel is among the seven most impactful actions that individuals and households in the United States can take to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions.
This collection contains four stories (see below) that explore the use of technology to create scalable solutions. In Shenzen, a Chinese mega-city of over 20 million people, BYD Co. has electrified 16,000 city buses and intends to electrify all vehicles in the city by 2025. Stretching from British Columbia to the Mexican border, the West Coast Electric Highway now provides a corridor of thousands of charging stations located every 20-25 miles that runs half the length of the continent, enabling zero-emission road trips. White Plains, NY, has launched a fleet of electric school buses that are both healthier for the children that ride in them and better for the environment. Stockholm, Sweden recently installed the world’s first electrified road that recharges the batteries of electric cars and trucks as they drive. This solution is one of the Drawdown Ecochallenge actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2018-08-30/shenzhen-the-first-quieter-megacity-thanks-to-electric-vehicles
Blake Schmidt
Bloomberg
30 August 2018
Text / 1500-3000 Words
Massive investment in electric vehicles has reduced noise and air pollution in China. The megacity of Shenzhen, for example, is surprisingly quiet with its fleet of electric buses and ban on gas-powered motorcycles. However, the country’s reliance on coal means that EVs still plug into a dirty grid.
https://www.yesmagazine.org/planet/the-west-coast-electric-highway-enables-zero-emission-road-trips-20180720
Erika Lundahl
Yes! Magazine
20 July 2018
Text / 800-1500 Words
Although electrical cars are not of the majority in the United States, their popularity is steadily increasing. Stretching from Baja California to British Columbia, the West Coast Electrical Highway is providing electric vehicle drivers a means to greater access to charging stations while consequently helping to cut down on greenhouse gas emissions.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/12/climate/electric-school-buses.html
Brad Plumer
The New York Times
12 November 2018
Text / 800-1500 Words
Electric cars have already made their entrance into American society, but now school buses are also joining the ranks of energy efficient vehicles. From New York to California, school systems are actively finding ways to implement the buses into their rotations in order to cut down on the carbon footprint of school transportation and reduce the cost of fuel.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/apr/12/worlds-first-electrified-road-for-charging-vehicles-opens-in-sweden
Daniel Boffey
The Guardian
12 April 2018
Multi-Media / Under 800 Words
Stockholm, Sweden has opened the world's first stretch of road that will recharge car's batteries as people drive. Similar to a tram system, but half the cost, motorists install a moveable arm to the undercarriage of their vehicles which connects to the electrified strip running down the road. Talks have already begun about expanding the pilot in order to move towards achieving independence from fossil fuels by 2030.
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