EU is banning gas & diesel powered vehicles....

[peteg59]

Will America be next to phase out gasoline- and diesel-powered vehicles?

By Jillian MacMath, AccuWeather staff writer

July 25, 2017, 8:28:37 AM EDT

In an effort to meet the agreements of the Paris climate accord, the French government has announced the country will ban the sale of gasoline and diesel vehicles by 2040.

They are one of several European countries which have taken strides to reduce their carbon footprint through the ban of vehicles which burn fossil fuels.

Norway, which has the greatest concentration of electric cars globally, aims to allow the sale of only all-electric and plug-in hybrid cars by 2025.

Meanwhile, the Netherlands and parts of Germany are considering a 2025 and 2030 phaseout, respectively.

However, the United States has made no such country-wide declaration to cut ties with fossil fuels, despite nine states taking matters into their own hands and introducing zero-emissions plans.

So, does the U.S. government plan to follow suit?

According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), it’s not in the cards.

“Since 1970 in the U.S. under the Clean Air Act, air pollution has been reduced by about 70 percent, while the economy has grown threefold,” an EPA spokesperson said.

“Other than phasing out lead in gasoline in the 70s and early 80s, there has been no need to 'ban' any type of vehicle or fuel, nor do we foresee a need to do so in the future,” they said.

Steady progress in reducing air pollution and advancements in pollution control technology has made this unnecessary, they said.

“Bottom line – U.S. vehicles have been able to carry us more miles and do more work while getting steadily cleaner and more efficient over time. Through continued innovation, we expect this trend to continue well into the future.”

Legislation or not, car makers are taking the initiative to appeal to buyers’ green interests.

In July, Volvo announced it would produce only electric and hybrid vehicles from 2019 onward.

“This announcement marks the end of the solely combustion engine-powered car,” President and Chief Executive Håkan Samuelsson said.

While Volvo is one of few automakers to publicly commit to this, experts say it makes little difference; electric-only cars are coming, ready or not.

Tony Seba, a Stanford University economist and author of Rethinking Transportation, told the Guardian: “Banning sales of diesel and gasoline vehicles by 2040 is a bit like banning sales of horses for road transportation by 2040: there won’t be any to ban.”

[trike lady]

I hope they realize they'll have to ban diesel locomotives also.

[rhino 2]

I hope they realize they'll have to ban diesel locomotives also.

They should have banned diesel tanks 75/80 years ago....

[consitter]

They should have banned diesel tanks 75/80 years ago....

Would've made for some interesting wars.

[1dn5up]

Sorry folks, but there will be a delay in your cruse due to cloudy weather ! 📞

[Sunman]

So I wonder if Volvo is going to stop making gasoline and diesel trucks too? I can't wait to see an electric 18 wheeler! Of course one has to consider where this is coming from...Europe.

Sunman

[Lee H. Mann]

Sorry folks, but there will be a delay in your cruse due to cloudy weather ! 📞

I can see it now ... planes falling from the skies ..... people in the streets out of gas and being run down and robbed by crazed bicyclists .... ships at sea floating until their bilge pumps stop working.

Oh ... the humanity !!!

I am glad I live in America where gas will be $1.00 per gallon when the s*** hits the fan.

[1dn5up]

18 wheelers all doubles, one loaded with batteries, the other for cargo, both with huge solar panels on the roof ------ 📞

[rhino 2]

18 wheelers all doubles, one loaded with batteries, the other for cargo, both with huge solar panels on the roof ------ 📞

How long can that last, The History Channel says the Sun will burn out in a billon years or so, Then what are we gonna do?....

[1dn5up]

How long can that last, The History Channel says the Sun will burn out in a billon years or so, Then what are we gonna do?....

We will all move to the hotsprings at yellowstone with yogi and boo boo 📞

[Dockem]

Think of all the new jobs it'll create! An underpowered electrical grid that will need to totally revamped to meet the demand, all the solar panel farms, all the wind mill farms, all the hydroelectric plants, and all the associated, collateral jobs that accompany them.

All that inexpensive electricity at our fingertips. All subsidized by the guvmint. And we'll all get to drive glorified golf carts.

{And then the Sun decides to refuse to cooperate by sending out a giant X-flare that wipes out the grid..... }

Sorry, having a sarcastic, reality check moment.

[trike lady]

How long can that last, The History Channel says the Sun will burn out in a billon years or so, Then what are we gonna do?....

I won't be around to see it happen.

[rhino 2]

I won't be around to see it happen.

You know what they say; You never know....But how do they know, You never know' When they never know..

[peteg59]

I'd be one of the first to rail against the elimination of the internal combustion engine, but my voice is insignificant in the government's, (Obama/Dem's/tree huggers), view.

Thankfully under POTUS Trump, we've withdrawn from the Paris climate accord. That may slow down the momentum that electric vehicles development & production seem to be getting on our shores. However it will not stop manufacturers from continuing to produce electric vehicle technologies. In the short term, it will reduce pressure on them to do anything immediately.

I'm affraid the proverbial "Genie is out of the lamp" on electric & self driving vehicles in future generations, I just hope I'm long gone when one can no longer fill up with gasoline at the local fuel station!

[FuzzyWuzHe]

I just hope I'm long gone when one can no longer fill up with gasoline at the local fuel station!

Amen, me too. You know what they say about old dogs.

[desertclassic]

I have seen many changes in my life. I don't know how I would react when the time comes to ban fuel powered vehicles. Jim

[MikeyTX]

Considering the size of the USA, it would not work very good here.

[consitter]

Considering the size of the USA, it would not work very good here.

Especially because of distances that would have to be traveled between re-charging. Of course by that time, I'm sure there will be batteries that will last for weeks at a time on a charge, no matter what distance is put on them.

[Dockem]

Some Brits are skeptical also:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/money/car...-councils.html

[frostbite51]

2040? My generation will all be gone, or drooling in their oatmeal. We grew up on gas engines, taking the old lawnmower apart, learning to tune carbs. The millennials? They grew up on IPads and Facebook. They'll jump at the chance for an electric car. No smelly gasoline? No messy oil changes? Right up their alley.

Right now the electric car is like the gas auto in 1900. Not much range, and few spots to fill them. That will change. Today in the news https://thenextweb.com/tech/2017/07/...#.tnw_D4uVxhNV people at Drexler U announced a battery using MXene, recharges in seconds. A group last month said they can make a car battery that will go 300 miles on a five minute charge using organic polymers, whatever that is.

The point is, there's a lot of people looking for a better battery. Someone will find it. Everyone wants to be the next Microsoft or Amazon...