I've been non-stop thinking about my transportation situation. Some days, I want to work a deal with Amtrak and do the last-mile bike solution using my Bike Friday tikit, fast-folding bicycle. Other days I'm happy to turn the crank on my Subaru Forester and cruise to Sequential Biofuels and fill it with E85, get on up the road. Still others, I want to find a nice VW Westy and convert it to a full-on diesel-electric series hybrid vehicle. The thinking there is, battery technology will continue to improve with higher power density and lower weight, while biofuels will continue into the future... yes, no...?
Who knows, right ? Well, I still haven't decided, but the folks at Azure are helping me to envision the latter solution. They have developed diesel series hybrid technologies for fleet vehicles like Purolator, FedEx, Ford and others. It occurs to me that the biggest winners would be FedEx, UPS and the US Postal Service. But, with many people like myself who travel 30-40K miles a year in sales, something like this would make a lot of sense. And as a commercial solar consultant, what makes even more sense is the addition of solar vehicle charging stations at all these fleet installations - and in community solar installations.
I'll keep working and hoping. Maybe sometime soon, this can all be a reality and I'll be more than a spectator. At least with the solar, I can participate. So, if you're reading this, have an interest in solar electric hydrid vehicles, fleet electric hybrid vehicles or strictly solar for your home or business - drop me a line at jd@aesrenew.com. And when I'm not in my Subie, zipping to and fro throughout the lower Willamette Valley and places between the Cascades and Coast - we'll see you out there, on my bike of course...
