Posted by Michael Pardee on August 15, 2005, 12:46 pm
> It is odd that the Battery Electric Vehicles (electric cars) are allowed
> in the HOV no matter how inefficient they are and no matter what power
> source is used to charge the battery pack.
I suppose the concept is to encourage development along the lines of those
cars. I don't know whether the strategy is sound but it makes some sense.
Mike
Posted by B. Peg on August 15, 2005, 12:57 pm
> It is odd that the Battery Electric Vehicles (electric cars) are allowed
> in the HOV no matter how inefficient they are and no matter what power
> source is used to charge the battery pack.
Dunno about the inefficiency argument. You'd need to argue it with the
railroads as they also use almost the same technology (diesel engine runs
generators to drive electric motors for the wheels). All said, less fuel
consumption per mile is an efficiency gain, imo, leaving out the price of
the car in the equation.
Only one I ponder is the Outlander, or whatever the damn SUV Toyota makes
that I cannot remember, is a good example >:o( . The higher price of
"that" hybrid is questionable for the minimal mpg gain on the sticker
(almost 1-2mpg freeway and maybe 6-8 mpg in the city). Dealer salesman was
disappointed with the numbers as well and all had hoped it would be higher.
That one isn't enough for me, and I think the idea was to push the
horsepower at a slight edge in mpg (very slight).
B~
Posted by dbs__usenet on August 17, 2005, 12:19 am
>> It is odd that the Battery Electric Vehicles (electric cars) are allowed
>> in the HOV no matter how inefficient they are and no matter what power
>> source is used to charge the battery pack.
>
> Dunno about the inefficiency argument. You'd need to argue it with the
> railroads as they also use almost the same technology (diesel engine runs
> generators to drive electric motors for the wheels). All said, less fuel
> consumption per mile is an efficiency gain, imo, leaving out the price of
> the car in the equation.
You missed the point that was being made. Not all electric cars are
effcient. It depends on a lot of different factors, including the
electronics, choice of battery and choice of motors. Some take more
energy (from well to wheel) than a high effcieincy hybrid. Some of that
energy is generated by burning coal; a large part of the power used in
California comes from out of state coal powered plants.
So with that in mind, the Cal HOV lane access is granted to all electric
cars, regardless of the efficiency or power source. That may help
develop electric car markets, and maybe that's the reason for the
automatic access.
Posted by kari on September 2, 2005, 5:47 am
Does anyone know if the $ fee is annual or a one shot deal?
Kari
> Hi Folks,
> Just want to share what I've found out about the HOV (car pool lane)
> stickers. I spent most of yesterday learning about it.
> If you live in most of california, just fill out the form on the
> DMV's page (www.dmv.ca.gov) and send it in with a check.
> If you live in any county surrounding the SF bay, you have to jump
> through hoops. You need to get a special electronic radio transmitter
> before you get the sticker. The DMV page has incorrect information
> at this time, since the rules seem to be changing quickly and two
> dofferent goverenment agencies are involved.
> The hoops are:
> o You need to get a special FasTrak radio transmitter.
> The transmitter is required so you will be properly billed when you
> use the toll bridges. This ignores the fact that some of us (most???)
> don't commute across a toll bridge. It's required anyway.
> To get this transmitter, you have to mail in a copy of
> your registration which has to identify your car as a hybrid.
> Unfortunately, MY registration does not mention the model, just the
> make and VIN.
> If you have an existing FasTrak automatic toll account, you have to
> trade it in for a new one.
> The form has to be downloaded online, (a PDF) and printed out, then
> mailed in. You can't call it on or do it on-line. The PDF file
> will not print unless you have a recently updated copy of Adobe's
> Acrobat Reader.
> They will mail you the transmitter and the special paperwork that the
> DMV is not expecting.
> Note that this does not apply to people with hybrids in adjacent
> counties who do commute via the SF Bay area toll bridges. They don't
> need to get a transmitter.
> o You need to send the DMV a form and $ and your proof of FasTrak
> account.
> As of today, the DMV still does not know that the FasTrak folks
> are telling us that we need a special trasnmitter, not the standard
> account.
> A DMV employee told me to just send in the $ and the form to see if
> it is accepted.
> The form must be mailed, since the local DMV offices are not stocking
> the sticker.
> o The Bay Area Toll Authority (BATA) has put out a contract for more than
> $00,000 to install fastrak readers on the 4 bridges that have
> dedicated carpool lanes.
> Wouldn't it be cheaper to simply put up a sign saying "hybrids exit
> carpool lane here to pay toll"?
> Please, if you are in california, please contact your state senator and
> assembly person and ask that they revoke that silly requirement. None of
> the
> other low polution cars (electric, CNG, vanpool, etc) are required to get
> an
> electronic tag, so why should we.
> As a parting shot: Liz Figeroa, state senator for my area, did not know
> that
> almost 1/2 of all the hybrids in california are in the greater bay area.
> Let your elected representatives know.
> Daniel
> fa
Posted by dbs__usenet on September 8, 2005, 1:24 am
> Does anyone know if the $ fee is annual or a one shot deal?
>
> Kari
It looks like a one-shot.
I found out (after waiting 3 weeks for a response) that you can simply
drive to the FasTrak servcie center to get your special transponder.
Unfortunately, there's only one and it's near fishermans wharf in SF.
They had not processed my application and the credit card I gave them
expired, so I made the trip to SF.
It was Saturday, and Hybrid owners were coming in at the rate of 1 a
minute. The average distance traveled by the folks that came in while
I was there was about 40 miles.
I know I wasted almost 2 gallons of gas driving in there and back, and
I suspect the others did too. Only one of the hybrid owners actually
crosses a toll bridge with any regularity. So one out of 5 would get
any value from the FasTrak device.
Now I have to wait for the DMV to process their part.
It's so ironic that getting an HOV sticker is causing thousands of
drivers to drive tens of thousands of miles that they don't need to.
Again, if you are in California, contact your State Senators and
Assemblymembers to let them know how messed up this is.
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> in the HOV no matter how inefficient they are and no matter what power
> source is used to charge the battery pack.