OSLO: An electrified road in Sweden that is the first in the world to charge vehicles as they drive along is showing promise and could potentially help cut the high cost of electric cars, project backers Vattenfall and Elways told Reuters.The state-funded project, named eRoadArlanda and costing about 50 million crowns (US$5.82 million), uses a modified electric truck that moves cargo from Stockholm's Arlanda airport to Postnord's nearby logistics hub to test the technology.A electrified rail embedded in the tarmac of the 2-km-long (1.24 miles) road charges the truck automatically as it travels above it. A movable arm attached to the truck detects the rail's location in the road, and charging stops when the vehicle is overtaking or coming to a halt.The system also calculates the vehicle’s energy consumption, which enables electricity costs to be debited per vehicle and user.Elways' chief executive Gunnar Asplund said the charging while driving would mean electric cars no longer … [Read more...] about Electrified roads: Swedish project could slash cost of electric vehicles
Road user charges cost
Over-charged utilities
Prices for solar-generated electricity provided by commercial firms are falling dramatically. A Mexican solar power company just won a bid to produce electricity for a wholesale cost of US$17.70 (580 baht) per megawatt hour. The next two lowest bids were by Saudi Arabian and Italian firms. Compare that to the price for electricity in Thailand. For the end-user, electricity costs around $132 per megawatt hour. Granted, that's comparing wholesale with retail numbers, but it still should be sobering for the old men who control electricity output/distribution in Thailand.At the very least, electricity brokers in Thailand should seriously consider how to lower costs, for themselves and for consumers. The future is upon us. Burning fossil fuels such as lignite (to generate electricity) is outmoded thinking. Not only is lignite dirty, but it will prove to be more costly than clean renewable energy. KEN ALBERTSENRe: "Anti-alcohol drive 'a success'", (BP, Dec 28).The Thai Health Promotion … [Read more...] about Over-charged utilities
House to summon Road Board following complaints
By Charissa Luci-Atienza The House of Representatives will summon the members of the Road Board following complaints from congressmen that some of them impose illegal conditions on those who seek to avail of the road user’s tax. Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez said the Road Board members must explain reports that they were allegedly taking advantage of their positions to receive huge kickbacks from projects funded by the road user’s tax. “Nag-file po ako ng bill para i-abolish ang Road Board dahil nga maraming reklamo yung mga congressman natin na talagang hinihingan sila ng 20 percent doon sa project cost (I have filed a bill to abolish the Road Board because of many complaints from congressmen that they have been asked 20 percent of the project cost) ,” Alvarez told reporters. House Bill No. 6236 Alvarez earlier filed House Bill No. 6236 seeking to abolish the Road Board and transfer its functions to the Department of Public Works and Highways … [Read more...] about House to summon Road Board following complaints
MVUC and the Road Board: What you need to know
Last May, the Road Board announced its roadmapping project, known as the “Establishment of the Provincial and City Locational Referencing System and Conduct of Road Inventory Survey” in partnership with the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), will be completed by the last quarter of the year. Road Board Project Manager Ruby Socorro Romero said that a road inventory for local and city roads is important in road management as it allows local government units (LGUs) to know which roads are prioritised for repair and maintenance. “There was no national inventory for those kind of roads, only the LGUs have it. And the methods they use in measuring those roads can create discrepancy and confusion since we don’t have a standard tool in measuring them,” she said. The project was proposed by DILG and was funded by the Road Board in 2014, with help from Geodata, an IT company which supplied data gathered from surveying the local roads. The project … [Read more...] about MVUC and the Road Board: What you need to know
Fast Times investigates cycling on PH roads
When Aurora Lim watches her husband, Erwin, head off to their sign-making business in Pasay City from their home in Quezon City, a part of her is terrified for the journey that awaits him. Now if he were taking his car for the 19-kilometer trip, which would typically take two or so hours through morning gridlock, you’d say she’s overreacting. But Erwin doesn’t use his car to go to work – he instead rides a bicycle. Many of you would say Erwin is crazy. Why on Earth would he eschew his car for a bike – an inherently unstable vehicle that leaves him so exposed to the elements, his skeleton functions as the crumple zone – to go long distances in the city, even if he does ride through less-congested side streets? “On a bike, I can get from my house to my office, and vice versa, in one hour,” Erwin said in a phone interview. “Regardless of the congestion I encounter, I can do that one hour consistently.” Good but deadly … [Read more...] about Fast Times investigates cycling on PH roads