Trends in car sales: the good, the bad, and the ugly

Car sales in June dropped over 18% to the lowest level in 10 years. Demand for small, fuel-efficient cars continues to grow, however, as pickup truck and SUV sales decreased. This shift has blindsided every automaker except for Honda, whose sales rose 1% in June. Even Toyota was unable to meet demand for its fuel efficient models. Gas prices, a slow economy, and a slowdown in housing construction have all been blamed for the drop in sales. Curiously, it is not only efficient models like the Toyota Prius that are in high demand - according to Forbes, the full size SUV Lexus LX, that gets 14 mpg, is the second most wanted vehicle after the Prius. Some auto analysts note that the the SUV market, though struggling, isn't dead. [Source: NY Times, Yahoo! Autos]

A green cab company

Burlington has a new fledgling cab company in town - GreenCab VT. They have a Mercedes that runs on biodiesel and a low-speed electric car for fares around town. In the future they hope to add hybrids and fuel cell cars. [Source: Burlington Free Press]

Solar power for the Prius?

Rumor has it that Toyota is aiming to add a boost to its high end Prius by adding a solar panel to the roof. Current solar panel technology means that roof space is insufficient to generate much power, but the design does use it where it makes the most sense: helping power air conditioning, which you're more likely to want on when there's plenty of sun outside.
[Sources: eFlux Media, Auto Week]

Idling policies around the country

With fuel costs affecting government-owned fleets, several communities have joined the no-idling chorus. Hernando County, Florida has outlawed idling by county government vehicles (with the usual operational exceptions), the state of Florida has ruled that heavy duty diesel engines cannot idle more than five minutes, and the city of Edmonds, Washington is considering an anti-idling ordinance. [Sources: Hernando Today, St. Petersburg Times, Herald Net]

Policy watch: Public transit forums

Vermont Agency of Transportation is soliciting feedback on public transit around the state to inform its Short Range Public Transportation Plan. Topics under consideration include a review of service areas, current and future demand. For dates, times, and locations, click here. [Source: Rutland Herald, VTrans]

Policy watch: The candidates on transportation energy

A few of the stories available about some of the campaign statements Obama and McCain have made regarding alternative vehicles, alternative fuels, and transportation fuel efficiency:

• McCain and Obama share energy goals, not methods - Christian Science Monitor
• Where the candidates stand on energy - Detroit Free Press
• New Battery Technology "In the Works" Years Before McCain's $300 Million Proposal to Award a "Breakthrough" - The Cutting Edge News

A Glimpse into Transportation at Large...

High speed rail conversations
High speed rail is being explored in California, Texas, and southern states. [Sources: San Jose Mercury News, Temple Daily Telegram, NBC]

National lab work on alt fuels
As one of the flagship nationial research labs, Argonne National Laboratory is working hard to develop alternative fuel technologies. [Source: Voice of America]

Walk or drive?
Navitime is launching a service with its route-mapping system, accessible from PCs or certain cell phone models, that tells you the number of calories you'd use walking a route vs. driving it.
[Source: Network World]