hybrids the practical urban car alte rnative? Probleras in battery technology will slow push for ZEV vehicles THE TOPOGRAPHY around Los Angeles, like Van- couver, is one of natural splendor. Majestic mountains with snow-capped peaks form a backdrop for the palm- studded valleys, minor mountain ranges, and crescent- shaped coastline with its miles of sandy yellow beaches. The problem is, you just can’t see it most of the time. The ever-present brown haze that hangs over the vast Los Angeles basin renders nature’s beauty invisible, and the same thing may very well happen here in Vancouver in the next 20 years if urban growth and automotive technology continue unabated. Fortunately for us, solutions be- ing devised in California right now may save Our city froma similar fate. The State of California has mapped out an extensive plan to reduce automobile emissions significantly over the next 10 years by tightening emissions standards for gasoline and diesel-fuelled vehicles, and encouraging alter- native fuels such as methanol and natural gas. One of the most controversial proposals involves mandating the sale of zero-emissions vehicles (ZEVs). Beginning in 1998, California will be the first legal jurisdiction in the world to require automobile manufacturers to sell zero-emis- sions vehicles — which effectively means electric cars. By law, two per cent of each manufacturer’s vehicles sold in that state must be ZEVs. For some of the larger companies like Ford and General Motors, that means selling thousands of electric cars each year. The idea of a small, quiet, non-polluting urban car sounds like the ideal solution to the world’s urban pollution and con- gestion problemis, but the reality of electric car technology is far from practical. Leaving aside the issue of whether manufacturers should be forced to sell ZEVs by law, the major forsezable problem with electric cars is that few people are likely to buy them. Despite public empathy for en- vironmental causes, surveys con- ducted by automobile manufac- AUTOMOTION turers indicate that most con- sumers will not buy electric cars when they become available. Why? At the moment, even the best electric car prototypes have a driving range one-quarter that of comparable gasoline-fuelled cars. Most need to be recharged fre- quently for long periods of time. Their battery packs have a limited life and are expensive to replace. Electric cars are heavy and offer poor performance. And even with government sub- sidies, electric cars are expected to cost considerably more than com- parable gasoline-fuelled automobiles. The sobering fact is that despite almost a century of battery devel- opment, few major advances in battery technology have been made. I recently had a chance to test-drive Ford’s new EcoStar electric van, of which about 80 are currently under test use in vehicle fleets in the United States. The EcoStar is based on the European Escort Van and uses sodium sulphur batteries mounted under the cargo floor. The vehicle See Heavy page 42 Let's Hear Your Views About Hosting Community Events! Over the last several years, community events such as the Clam Chowder Contest, Day in Scotland, and many others have been held at Waterfront and other parks in the City. To address the challenges of hosting such events, the City of North Vancouver is presently developing Policies and Procedures related to Community Events held in our parks and open spaces. We invite interested members of the general public to pick up a copy of this draft document for their review and critique at: Engineering Department Office North Vancouver City Hall 141 West 14th Street North Vancouver, B.C. V7M 1H9 ) The City of North Vancouver os The. 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