by jboullion | Aug 25, 2010 | Uncategorized
From a article by Tom Content in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:
Town of Oconomowoc — Sandy Syburg has driven school buses for years – but none like these.
When they start rolling on their routes next week, these hybrid electric school buses won’t lurch forward the way conventional school buses do.
A diesel engine is least efficient when it’s trying to get a 27,000-pound vehicle moving from a full stop, Syburg said. Thanks to the hybrid technology, the electric motor kicks in first, with lithium-ion batteries powering the bus forward from a stop.
“It’s very smooth. It’s like a gust of wind when you’re sailing,” said Syburg, chief executive of Oconomowoc Transport Co.
In the bus terminal, Syburg can plug an electrical cord into the side of the bus so that solar panels can charge the batteries that run the vehicle’s electric motor.
To date, more than 100 hybrid school and commercial buses have rolled off of the IC Bus LLC assembly line since 2007. Eleven of them are plug-in hybrid electric school buses in Oconomowoc, ready to start the school year next week.
The investment, aided by a state grant through the federal stimulus package, aims to reduce diesel fuel use by 7,500 gallons a year. That would provide savings of $26,000 in fuel costs for the Oconomowoc Area School District at today’s diesel prices.
When they’re done with their morning school run, the buses will return to the bus company on Brown St. and their batteries will be recharged with the help of 224 solar panels that were erected by Renewable Energy Solutions of Waukesha.
It’s the first solar-electric charging station in the state, and it’s ready to power the biggest fleet of plug-in hybrid school buses in the country.
The buses are projected to result in saving because of a 50% gain in fuel economy. A typical bus gets 7 miles per gallon, but the hybrid technology will boost that to 12.
“It’s a little glimpse of the future; it’s very impressive,” said Mike Barry, assistant superintendent of the district. The district will seek to incorporate the solar-powered hybrids into its curriculum.
“We’re trying to make some links between the curriculum that the students learn about in school and the real world,” he said. “When the connection is as immediate as the very bus that takes you to and from school, that’s a powerful connection.”
by jboullion | Aug 24, 2010 | Uncategorized
From Madison Gas & Electric:
A few changes in your driving habits could save you money and gasoline. Hypermilers say it’s easy… and anyone can do it.You don’t have to drive an electric car or hybrid to drive more sustainably. In this story, we hit the road with an expert hypermiler to learn what it takes to go the extra
mile.
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by jboullion | Aug 23, 2010 | Uncategorized
From an article by Andrew Weiland in BizTimes.com:
Although U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood insists that high-speed rail is inevitable in the state, Wisconsin Department of Transportation officials indicate a new governor could stop the $810 million project planned between Milwaukee and Madison. However, it would be costly to do so.
The Republican candidates for governor in Wisconsin, Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker and former Congressman Mark Neumann, have pledged to stop the high-speed rail project if elected.
“As governor, I will stop this train dead in its tracks,” Walker said.
“This is an Obama wasteful spending boondoggle that I will stop immediately in its tracks as governor,” Neumann said. . . .
Although the federal government is providing the construction funds for the Milwaukee-to-Madison high-speed rail project, the state Department of Transportation, and not the federal government, is in charge of the project, said John Oimoen, passenger rail program manager for the Wisconsin DOT.
A spokeswoman for the U.S. DOT declined to directly answer a question asking if a future governor could cancel the high-speed rail project in Wisconsin.
“We’re not going to speculate on hypothetical situations,” said U.S. DOT spokeswoman Olivia Alair.
If a new governor wants to stop the high-speed rail project, the federal funds would have to be sent back to the federal government. By the time a new governor is sworn in, in January, the state will have allocated more than $100 million in engineering and construction contracts, Oimoen said. Construction is expected to begin in October on “land bridges” over wetland areas west of Watertown, he said.
A new governor could direct the Department of Transportation to cancel engineering and construction contracts. However, the state would have to pay a “significant” amount of money to contractors for claims that they would make for their equipment, material and labor costs incurred on their cancelled projects, said Paul Trombino, division operations director for the state DOT.
“I’m not saying it can’t be done,” Trombino said. “We have the ability to get out, but there could be significant costs to get out of a contract.”
The state has a $2.5 billion budget deficit, which could make it difficult to find funds to reimburse the federal government for money already spent on the high-speed rail project by January when the new governor takes office, and to pay the claims filed by contractors for the cancelled contracts.
“In the short term, it creates a major budget problem if we just decide we’re going to stop everything and scramble to send the funds back to Washington that we have already spent,” said state Rep. Jon Richards (D-Milwaukee). “I think it will be very difficult to cancel the project, and I think it would be unwise to do so.”
by jboullion | Aug 20, 2010 | Uncategorized
From a news release issued by the Wisconsin Department of Transportation:
The Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) is announcing two community workshops to discuss the design process for the High-Speed Intercity Passenger Rail project. The workshops are scheduled from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. on August 25, 2010 and August 30, 2010. The August 25 workshop will be held at the Sun Prairie Municipal Building, 300 E. Main Street, Sun Prairie, WI. The August 30 workshop will be held at the Waterloo High School at 865 N. Monroe Street, Waterloo, WI.
At the workshop WisDOT and consultant staff will be available to discuss design activities in the Milwaukee-Madison rail corridor. Staff is also interested in hearing from the community on issues of concern to them as design continues to get underway. The team preparing the planning and environmental studies for rail stations in the corridor will also be on hand to answer questions about the station development process.
The public is encouraged to attend the meeting, provide input and ask questions concerning this project. Maps showing project corridor and potential station sites will be on display.
If you are unable to attend the meeting, or would like more information, contact Alyssa Macy at (414) 550-9407. Written comments regarding the project can be mailed to Alyssa Macy, Wisconsin Department of Transportation, High-Speed Passenger Rail Program Management Team, 433 W. St. Paul Avenue, Suite 300, Milwaukee, WI 53203-3007. To request an interpreter for people who are deaf or hard of hearing, please call 711, the Wisconsin Telecommunication Relay System, at least three working days prior to the meeting. Ask the communication assistant to contact Alyssa Macy of the Wisconsin Department of Transportation at (414) 550-9407.
For more information, contact:
Alyssa Macy, High Speed Rail Program
(414) 550-9407, WisconsinRail@dot.wi.gov
by jboullion | Aug 19, 2010 | Uncategorized
From a blog post by Larry Sandler on JSOnline.com:
The debate over a planned high-speed rail line between Milwaukee and Madison has spawned dueling websites and online petition drives.
Republican gubernatorial candidate Scott Walker, who is stressing his opposition to the train route as a key campaign issue, recently set up a “Stop the Train!” site, www.notrain.com. Visitors to that site are encouraged to sign on to Walker’s open letter to President Barack Obama opposing the project, which would be built with $810 million in federal stimulus money but then would require $10 million a year in state tax dollars to operate.
Walker, the Milwaukee County executive, faces former U.S. Rep. Mark Neumann, also a high-speed rail critic, in the Sept. 14 GOP primary. Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett, the leading Democratic candidate, supports the train line.
In response to Walker’s site, the Midwest High Speed Rail Association set up its own Web page to back the rail project. Visitors to that page can send a message to gubernatorial candidates and elected officials voicing support for the train line.
