The end of Satan’s fuel?

[AmericanThunder]

The Fiat/Chrysler group have now announced that they will no longer have any Diesel engines in any of their line-up by 2022.
The group includes Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Lancia, Dodge, Chrysler, Jeep, Ram, Mopar and Maserati.

 

[TransAmDan]

What about buses, when will they stop giving out clouds of black smoke?

 

[AmericanThunder]

Remember that its the rise of portable electronics (phones, tablets, laptops) that have driven the advances in batteries that now mean electric cars are actually practicable.
Its only a matter of time before they gain the sort of momentum in commercial and heavy goods vehicles that we have seen in private vehicles.
Wasn't it only last month that Elon Musk announced his electric truck?

 

[AmericanThunder]

Well - a quick look back and it was actually Nov 2017 that Tesla announced the electric semi-truck.
Its coming and its coming fast - just hope that production of electricity is ramped up to cope. And then of course we have to deal with the emissions from traditional power stations or the increased number of spent rods from nuclear power stations. Either way, the days of the internal combustion engine for road vehicles looks to be numbered.

 

[renchero]

What about buses, when will they stop giving out clouds of black smoke?

never because they are not required to be emission tested

 

[TransAmDan]

never because they are not required to be emission tested

Annoying as the worst polluters get away with it. I don't know how buses make a profit. We have 3 buses every 15 mins down hartplain avenue. Less than 10 people on them, mostly its elderly which I guess have a free bus pass. I did use a bus about 7 years ago, it was an extortionate price, like £5 to go 1.4miles.
I'm not against public transport, if more people used it, it would get more cars off the road, however with the high prices, and having to use multiple buses to go where you want to go, its easier to walk.

 

[renchero]

The Fiat/Chrysler group have now announced that they will no longer have any Diesel engines in any of their line-up by 2022.
The group includes Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Lancia, Dodge, Chrysler, Jeep, Ram, Mopar and Maserati.

the return of the petrol lorry ??? i can see electric being in very short supply and very expensive.

 

[AmericanThunder]

the return of the petrol lorry ??? i can see electric being in very short supply and very expensive.

Maybe it’s time to undo the work of Beeching, and spend money on the railways with a network of distribution points for smaller vehicles to shift freight.....

 

[TransAmDan]

The government like spending money on railways, like HS2, a rapid link between two cities that don't speak much English.

Maybe we need British Rail again, they weren't so bad, and ticket prices we affordable. Full of money grabbing fat cats that say there isn't enough money to maintain the railways without putting up prices.

 

[AmericanThunder]

Without turning this into a political debate, but that’s where a company with stakeholders to satisfy and answerable to a board of investors (many of whom are not English) will always have a different agenda to a nationally owned service.
The private model can work, but only with sufficient regulation and the regulators must have teeth.

 

[Chriswrx123]

It will never happen everything we eat drink ware drive work with etc has been imported into this country by lorry and to get here by ship loaded by cranes and forklifts.its a world wide fuel the governments of the world would have to give the lorry’s boats fork lifts tractors etc away free and the back up to change it all up and have a surplus supply of electric which would cost billions of pounds just here let alone worldwide.electric driverless cars yes delivery companies doing local deliveries yes but it will be a lorry that gets it to the hub collected from dock delivered by boat.

 

[AmericanThunder]

I agree it seems unlikely but then again so were electric cars 15 years ago!

 

[TransAmDan]

Electric cars were about in the 1900's. Took a while to get going, but they are here now. I wonder what the fire services think of them. In an accident they either burn for days, or spill dangerous chemicals worse than flamible petrol. I guess problems are being solved, and soon we will be calling a car from an app and it takes us to where we want to go, all driverless.

 

[an88fiero]

Driverless cars are a scary thought!

 

[renchero]

who is responsibly when a driverless car is involved in an accident and would i got nicked if i got a driverless car to take me home after a few too many sherbets [hypothetical question as i don't drink]

 

[AmericanThunder]

If it was a Google driverless car then it would probably cause an accident by mowing down pedestrians, just so that it could claim the victims bodies and sell their organs to the highest bidder! Anything for a buck eh Google?