Regular readers at thegreencarwebsite.co.uk will know we’ve covered several stories about universities in America adopting green car club schemes. Well now, the idea has crossed the Atlantic to Buckinghamshire New University.

It has launched the country’s first university based environmentally friendly car club with students able to rent one of two new low-emission Volkswagen Polo BlueMotion models which can achieve 70mpg.

Under the terms of the club’s membership, the Polos, which are supplied by Citygate Volkswagen in High Wycombe, will be used by the university’s employees from the hours of 8am-6pm to help them get around campus. However, either side of the reserved business hours they can be driven by students who are aged at least 18 and have held a full driving licence for a year or more.

The club is free to join and employees and students can become members by applying online. They simply register and have their licence checked – they are then given a smartcard with access to the cars. The vehicles can be booked online or over the phone at short notice.

It is hoped that this will teach the students a valuable lesson about reducing their carbon footprint while also allowing them to travel around efficiently. Plans are already in place to expand the fleet of cars available for rent as awareness of the initiative increases.

The scheme was launched in co-operation with Commonwheels a charity which helps organisations set up car clubs and rent out vehicles.

Electric car retailer, NICE Car Company is ready to open a second retail outlet. From tomorrow, (30 October) NICE will trading from within Westfield Shopping centre in Shepherds Bush.

At Westfield, NICE will present its all-electric Mega City and MyCar models. Shoppers can also book test drives directly from the NICE stand which is located nearest the Wood Lane underground entrance on the ground floor.

Co-founder Julian Wilford said, “Like our range of all-electric cars, vans and motorcycles, Westfield is stylish and will have a positive effect on its local environment. We look forward to showing visitors that well-designed, safe and affordable electric cars are available to buy right now.”

Since 2006, NICE have traded from their showroom in Ladbroke Grove. NICE customers can benefit from  running costs from a couple of pence per mile, no road tax, no congestion charge and free parking in some parts of the country. Now that really is nice.

A green company car salary sacrifice scheme called EnviroDrive, offering cost saving and environmental benefits to both employer and employee, has been launched by Leasedrive Velo Group, one of the largest independent privately-owned vehicle management groups in the UK.

With a buying trend towards more fuel efficient and lower polluting cars, the most attractive vehicles offered under the new EnviroDrive scheme are generally those with CO2 emissions of 120 g/km or less so employees can take advantage of the reduced ten per cent and 13 per cent Benefit in Kind (BIK) tax brackets introduced in the April 2008 budget.

Roddy Graham, commercial director at Leasedrive Velo Group said: “It’s a win-win-win situation, with EnviroDrive offering significant benefits to employers, employees and the environment. From an employer standpoint, they pay a more tax efficient remuneration and reduced National Insurance (NI) contributions. It costs them nothing to introduce and is managed as a normal company car scheme. With the range of cars on offer under the scheme, EnviroDrive also ticks all the right green boxes by reducing the carbon footprint across the fleet and lowering fuel costs. It also improves employers’ corporate social responsibility standing, enhances their duty of care by eliminating ‘grey’ fleet risk and acts as a valuable recruitment and retention tool in the war for talent.

“Employees can enjoy the benefits of a company car at a lower than expected cost, with the savings on income tax and NI contributions outweighing their BIK contributions. They also enjoy the use of a more fuel efficient, fully serviced and maintained new car for two or three years backed by comprehensive insurance provided by the employer.”

On a typical monthly leasing cost of £250 paid through salary sacrifice, a lower rate tax payer would save £57.75 per month and a higher rate tax payer £57.50.

Through its totally integrated on-line fleet management solution, Drive:Manager, the EnviroDrive scheme can be accessed 24/7 by clients’ employees, where they can find promotional offers, compare and order cars. The EnviroDrive scheme is also supported by e-mail, poster and leaflet campaigns and regular driver clinics and roadshows.

 It’s not just the valleys that are green in Wales – now it’s the cars too as the country plays host to the UK’s first national low carbon vehicle event.

Five of the country’s leading alternative transport companies will gather for the one day event at Millbrook Proving Ground in Bedfordshire for the invitation-only showcase that is likely to attract more than 800 policymakers and industry experts.

Wales will feature heavily at the event with five representatives of its own including:

• Atraverda Ltd, which has developed a lighter ceramic material to replace heavy lead components;
• Connaught Engineering, which has developed the world’s only retrofit braking system which can save up to 25 per cent on fuel;
• The Narrow Car Company which has developed the two-seat NARO car;
• The Hydrogen Bus, the world’s first Tribrid minibus;
• And Stevens Vehicles, a Port Talbot company that has developed zero emission cars and vans that can travel for 50 miles on less than £1.

Economy and transport minister Ieuan Wyn Jones described Wales’ efforts as groundbreaking and stated that the country is making an important contribution towards the creation of a green automotive industry.

 The sun is shining on one car sharing organisation stateside, as HOURCAR, a Minneapolis-St Paul company offers two plug-in hybrid vehicles recharged with solar power to its members.

The organisation, which works in a similar manner to green car clubs here in the UK such as CityCar and WhizzGo, will receive electricity from solar-powered recharging stations. The electricity is passed on to the hubs which are based by a local Co-Operative store and by a light rail station.

There are more than 650 members of the HOURCAR scheme in the Twin Cities, with members connecting the plug-in hybrid electric Toyota Prius cars to standard 120V electric outlets when the cars are parked in their designated spots. When the vehicles are on the road, the 2kW grid-connected solar system then supplies electricity back to the host sites.

The scheme came about thanks to the Office of Energy Security, part of the Minnesota Department of Commerce, which put forward a grant. HOURCAR, which operates 16 low emission vehicles currently, hopes to expand its fleet to 26 units next year.

Global leading consulting, technology and outsourcing services company, Capgemini has published ‘Cars Online 08/09’, an in-depth study into the global automotive business with particular focus on the contribution the internet has in shaping car buying trends.
The report highlights the rising trend for greener vehicles while identifying the difference in car buying behaviour of consumers within mature and emerging markets.

Involving over 3,000 consumers in eight countries (Brazil, China, France, Germany, India, Russia, UK and US), the study identifies a number of key findings:

• For the first time in the report’s ten year history, a vehicle’s fuel economy has been found to be as important to consumers as safety and reliability, a result of rising fuel prices and increased concern about the environment.
• There are significant differences between the mature and developing markets, and also within the emerging markets of Brazil, Russia, India and China (the BRIC nations).
• People are also increasingly relying on the web for presales information, and are looking more and more to complete their purchases online.

“Our Cars Online research over the last ten years makes it clear just how much the automotive industry has changed in the last decade,” said Capgemini Automotive Leader, Nick Gill.

“We can expect equally significant changes to the industry in the next few years as consumer adoption of technology continues to rise rapidly. Manufacturers and dealers cannot afford to ignore the opportunities for growth presented by the internet as a direct sales channel which can inform customers on which vehicles meet their needs, such as greener vehicles.”

Rising fuel prices are having a significant effect on consumers’ vehicle purchasing decisions the study found, with 90 per cent of those surveyed citing fuel economy as an important consideration in their vehicle choice, particularly in the developing markets. The survey also found a rise in green vehicle ownership: 36 per cent of respondents say they own a fuel efficient or alternative fuel vehicle (up from 28 per cent last year) and half say they plan to buy such a vehicle. Despite this, sadly for the vehicle manufacturers, consumers surveyed are not prepared to pay a premium to go green, and the majority of respondents expect to pay no more than 10 per cent extra for fuel efficiency in a vehicle.

The repost also found an increased use of the internet as a research tool during the vehicle buying process, with 88 per cent of respondents indicating they use it as the primary source of information during the purchasing process, up from 11 per cent ten years ago.

Until fairly recently, the internet has been seen primarily an information source for purchasers but there is growing interest in buying vehicles online. Frustration with dealer negotiations and consumers’ increased web sophistication are driving this interest. In 2007, 20 per cent of consumers were looking to the internet as a sales channel and this year, the number has jumped to 44 per cent. Popular websites such as SaveMoneyOnCars.co.uk can confirm this trend following another successful year, while ContractHireAndLeasing.com continues to experience growing interest in the car leasing sector.

Ten years of Labour transport policies have been denounced as failures in a hard-hitting new book co-authored by Glasgow and Plymouth academics. The book entitled “Traffic Jam: 10 Years of ‘Sustainable’ Transport in the UK” co-edited by Dr Iain Docherty, an expert in the transport sector and government transport policy from the University of Glasgow, and Prof Jon Shaw, Director of the Centre for Sustainable Transport at the University of Plymouth assess the implementation of sustainable transport policies since Labour were elected in 1997.

Timed to coincide with the 10th anniversary of Labour’s White Paper ‘A New Deal for Transport’, which was supposed to herald the dawn of a new approach to transport in the UK, the book analyses the preceding attempt by Government to reform the transport network and introduce greener, more sustainable replacement over the last decade.

The main criticisms of the Government’s record on transport are: 

• Traffic congestion is worse than a decade ago
• The investment needs of the railways – particularly to increase capacity – have been almost completely ignored
• Bus services throughout most of the UK have remained poor, especially in comparison with our major European competitors
• Tram schemes have been abandoned, despite being proven highly effective at attracting motorists out of their cars
• Walking and cycling have been largely neglected
• The government is afraid of addressing the environmental impact of aviation
• Transport’s carbon emissions continue to rise
• Labour has been good at talking about transport improvements but far less adept at actually delivering any.

Prof Shaw said: “It is 10 years since the landmark White Paper ‘A New Deal For Transport’ which said that, for a long time we have been pursuing the wrong kinds of transport policies and that we should start to make them more sustainable – to use cars less, to walk more and to use the train more.

“The White Paper was a significant policy statement from New Labour and John Prescott famously said at the time ‘I will have failed in five years time if there are not more journeys made by public transport and fewer by car’.”

‘Traffic Jam’ is available to buy from www.policypress.org.uk

Leading automobile technology company, Roush Technologies will be displaying its latest bi-fuel Internal Combustion Engine conversion at the Cenex hosted UK National Low Carbon Vehicle event at the Millbrook Proving Ground today.

Roush will be revealing its modified Ford Transit which can operate on its traditional petrol engine or run on compressed hydrogen gas. The concept is designed to demonstrate that hydrogen technology can offer a real, viable solution for commercial vehicles.

As well as its own combustion engine, the Transit van has three tanks of hydrogen, underslung below the vehicle floor.  This installation provides a usable storage capacity for 4.5 kilograms of hydrogen at 350bar (5000psi) and gives an estimated range between 95 miles for the urban cycle and 135 miles for open highway running.

Roush Technologies recently established a collaboration agreement with ITM Power plc to provide the breakthrough refuelling solution by enabling vehicle operators to generate their own hydrogen fuel.  Using a patented electrolyser, due to enter production at ITM’s special facility in Sheffield later this year, it is possible to make hydrogen fuel wherever there is a source of electricity and water. 

The advances in electrolysis technology that ITM has achieved address the hydrogen infrastructure issue by using the already developed electricity and water distribution network.  The electrolyser can produce hydrogen from water and any source of electricity including off-peak or renewable energy – electricity generated by wind, wave or solar power.

Ford is announcing a new investment programme at its high-tech Bridgend engine plant in Wales to produce next generation low CO2 1.6-litre, four-cylinder petrol engines.

This latest investment totals £70 million for the plant, where this year employment rose to over 2,000 for the first time in its 28-year history.

Investment at Bridgend has amounted to £315 million in the last five years alone. This additional investment increases the plant’s production capability to almost 1,000,000 units per annum. Today’s announcement includes Welsh Assembly Government support of £13.4 million.

Investment in global technology
The new 1.6-litre engines will go into production within two years and demonstrate how Ford is meeting future global customer needs by delivering affordable and relevant new technology. They will be among the first of a new generation of global petrol powertrains, known as EcoBoost, featuring turbocharging and direct injection technology.

Ford EcoBoost petrol engines will deliver improved fuel economy and emissions without compromising driving performance and providing an alternative route to hybrid or diesel efficiency.

Compared with current larger displacement petrol engines of similar power, these new engines are expected to provide up to 20 per cent better fuel economy, 15 per cent lower CO2 emissions and superior driving performance.

EcoBoost engines will join the existing Ford ECOnetic range of frugal, ultra-low CO2 diesel engined vehicles launched this year – the Focus ECOnetic (115g CO2/km), the Mondeo (139g) and all-new Fiesta (98g) capable of over 76mpg (European Drive Cycle)*. A new Ford Ka ECOnetic has also been confirmed.

Bridgend’s expanding plant
The last new engine added at Bridgend plant was a premium 3.2-litre power unit in 2006. Used by Volvo in its vehicles, the compact in-line six-cylinder engine (SI6) is assembled on a Bridgend line that also produces V8 units and features flexible technology – enabling operators to switch between different products. The SI6/V8 flex line installed in 2004 represented a £245 million investment.

This illustrates the breadth of production at Ford Bridgend: four-, six- and eight-cylinder petrol engines with capacities ranging from 1.25 to 4.4 litres, which will be supplemented by this important new low CO2 engine.

John Fleming, Ford of Europe chairman and CEO, said: “We’re pleased to be able to invest further in the Ford Bridgend facility. The Bridgend team will play an important role in delivering these new engines, which add an innovative ingredient to petrol engine technology and deliver a combination of low emissions and efficient performance that will be vital to meet future customer needs around the world.”

Ford Fiesta 1.4-litre Zetec road test
Fiat Bravo Eco 1.6 Multijet 105 road test
Ford Focus ECOnetic 1.6 TDCi diesel road test

Confirming its commitment to encourage the development of eco-friendly personal transport in the UK, the Government invited several futuristic electric cars to Downing Street today (Monday 27 October).

The line-up of cars, which represented various different solutions to the challenge of creating all-electric vehicles for everyday use in the future, included the new TH!NK city – a 100% electric vehicle fully homologated for the European market.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Secretary of State for Transport Geoff Hoon and Business Minister Ian Pearson each examined the THINK city, a vehicle that is already available in Norway and which will go on sale in the UK sometime next year.

The car’s appearance in Downing Street coincided with a meeting in London arranged by the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform ( BERR ) and the Department for Transport, where plans to accelerate the mass production and usage of electric vehicles were discussed.

Manufactured by Norwegian electric vehicle (EV) pioneers Think, a company with 17 years experience in EVs, the new TH!NK city is a true, modern urban car, with zero emissions, low cost of ownership and silent running, with no road tax and no congestion charge.

The body of the TH!NK city is made of recyclable ABS plastic, which is designed to resist dents and scratches accumulated in city driving. It has a top speed of 65 miles per hour, accelerates from zero to 30 mph in just 6.5 seconds and to 50 mph in 16 seconds. The car can travel more than 112 miles (180 km) in city driving on a fully charged battery and requires just an overnight top-up of electricity from a domestic electricity socket to restore its charge.

TH!NK city is designed to meet strict safety requirements. Equipped with ABS brakes, airbags and three-point safety belts with pretensioners, it meets all European and US requirements.