parking
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Bureaucracies have some funny ways of saying they were wrong and you were right. Even if they can't tell you they made a mistake, it's nice to see them fix a problem they created. The latest bureaucracy to demonstrate this is Massport, which operates the parking garages at Boston's Logan International Airport. Their mistake was issuing me a citation for parking my fully electric 2015 Nissan Leaf in one of their parking spaces for clean-air vehicles. DONT' MISS: Zero emissions vs. "Hybrid": When is a Nissan Leaf not "green?" The ticket cited me for putting a vehicle that was not a hybrid into...
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Zero emissions vs. "Hybrid": When is a Nissan Leaf not "green?"
Dedicated reader John Briggs wrote in to Green Car Reports share his unfortunate experience with the airport police in Boston. We found his story so compelling, instructive—and dare we say entertaining?—that we felt it worthy of sharing. The following are his words, lightly edited for...
John Briggs -
World's largest electric-car charging site in parking facility: in Norway, of course (video)
Parking garages often aren't very well-lit, and a video tour of one may not sound like a particularly enjoyable way to spend time. But if you're an electric-car driver or advocate in North America, an 11-minute tour by electric-car advocate (and Tesla fanatic) Bjørn Nyland may be time well...
John Voelcker -
Smart ForTwo minicar: 15 years later, has it made a difference?
Minimal cars are often an appealing idea: why should one person drive a two-ton vehicle with five or more seats on local journeys of 10 miles or fewer? Then there's the crushingly difficult parking in major European, Asian, and North American cities. Add to that, perhaps, a desire for minimal use...
John Voelcker -
Wireless electric-car charging: perfect for automated parking?
A luxury residence in Philadelphia is combining automated parking with wireless charging.
Stephen Edelstein -
Charging etiquette for electric-car drivers: what you need to know
As electric-car adoption expands past early adopters into more general buyers, it may be difficult for public charging infrastructure to grow as fast as the number of electric vehicles on the road. Here in the U.S., every month roughly 10,000 new plug-in vehicles are sold or leased—and that...
Tom Moloughney -
The 2016 Smart ForTwo is the first entirely new version of the European two-seat minicar since that vehicle was launched in the late 1990s. And it's a much better car, with more power, a choice of manual or automated transmissions, modern comfort and interior features, and fuel economy that's stayed at the same level even given its added equipment and higher power. That said, the main reason to buy a Smart ForTwo isn't to save gasoline. It's to park in impossibly tiny spaces. DON'T MISS: 2016 Smart ForTwo - full review We spent parts of two days driving a couple of different 2016 Smart coupes...
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Tesla To Add More Model S Electric-Car Charging Sites In NYC
Tesla is partnering with parking garages to install charging stations in Manhattan.
Stephen Edelstein -
BlueIndy Electric Car-Sharing Parking Spaces Fought By Indianapolis Businesses
It always seemed unlikely, but the BlueIndy electric-car sharing program is getting closer to its rollout in the Midwestern city of Indianapolis, Indiana. The French-made Bollore BlueCar electric two-seaters are closer to arriving, and groups of Level 2 charging stations are popping up at curbsides...
John Voelcker -
Electric Police Cars? Seattle Uses Nissan Leafs For Traffic Enforcement
Seattle will use 28 Nissan Leaf electric cars for traffic enforcement.
Stephen Edelstein -
Gas Cars Parked In One Electric-Car Spot Earn Raleigh $27,000 A Year
The problem of gasoline cars parking in spaces reserved for plug-in electric cars to recharge at is nothing new. It's known as "ICE-ing," referring to cars with internal combustion engines parking where they shouldn't. But the problem has proved to be lucrative for Raleigh, North Carolina. DON'T...
John Voelcker -
Gas-Guzzlers Now Pay More To Park In Madrid
European cities aren't always that easy to navigate when you're in a car. They twist and turn through narrow, busy streets constrained by the topography and architecture, designed long before powered vehicles were prevalent. If that's not enough, one European city--the Spanish capital Madrid--is...
Antony Ingram -
Signage could stop internal-combustion vehicles from blocking parking spots with electric-car charging stations.
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When "Electric" Doesn't Qualify You To Use Electric-Car Parking
There it is, parked right in the space reserved for electric-car charging: a Hyundai Tucson. Which runs solely on gasoline. But wait! There's a badge on the back. Right under the silver Hyundai letters, it says, "all electric." Wow. Is this a prototype test car? Or an unpublicized plug-electric car...
John Voelcker -
Sustainable Parking Helps Cities Cut Emissions, Boost Efficiency
We've all been there: Whether the night before a major holiday, a Saturday at the local mall or in a busy area of town, finding a parking space can sometimes take an age. Then, when you think you've found a spot, you pull up to it only to find some comedian has parked a Smart Fortwo or similarly...
Antony Ingram -
Parking Apps Proliferate, But Can They Solve The Problem Of Traffic Congestion?
Yesterday, we received a press release from a company called Pango, which makes an app that allows motorists to pay for on-street parking. (The company's demo video is embedded above.) If you live in a city of any size, this isn't especially newsworthy. Products like Pango have been rolling out for...
Richard Read -
Park A Regular Car In Electric-Car Space? In WA, It'll Cost Ya: $124
They call it being ICEd--the practice of Internal Combustion Engine vehicles parking in spaces set aside for electric cars. It's the bane of many an electric vehicle owner's existance, pulling into their local parking lot to find the only charging spot occupied by some klutz in a regular car. And...
Antony Ingram -
Electric Lamborghini? Nope, Just A Rich Guy Who Can't Read
Plenty of supercar makers are getting in on the electric car act, these days. Porsche, Ferrari and McLaren all have hybrids and plug-in hybrids on the way--McLaren's was revealed just the other day. Then there are dedicated electric supercars, like the Rimac Concept One, or Mercedes SLS AMG E-Cell...
Antony Ingram -
New York City could be about to make a major step towards increasing electric car adoption in the city. NTC Mayor Michael Bloomberg wants a fifth of all new parking spaces to be wired up for, and set aside for electric vehicles. According to Transportation Nation, Bloomberg's prepared notes for Thursday's State of the City address said electric car spaces would be written into city building codes. “This year we’ll pilot curbside vehicle chargers that will allow drivers to fill up their battery in as little as 30 minutes. We’ll work with the City Council to amend the Building...
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Electric-Car Owners: Gas Car In Your Space? Use This Notice!
It's called in shorthand "being ICEd," meaning that an Internal-Combustion Engined car has parked in a space reserved for plug-in electric cars. What to do about it is the subject of much discussion among electric-car owners. Now charging network Blink is offering at least a partial solution. The...
John Voelcker -
Been ICEd? Gas Cars Parking In Electric-Car Charging Spots (Video)
If you drive an electric car, it's nice to know that if you're making a trip to the mall or a regular spot that you can charge up your car while you're running errands. Well, it's nice until you get there to find that some ignorant soul has parked their gas-guzzler in the space, preventing you from...
Antony Ingram -
Parking, Charging Your Electric Car? Read The Signs First
You know the score: you’re running late for a meeting, dinner date or flight, and need to find somewhere to charge your electric car while you’re gone. So you head to the nearest parking garage where you know there’s free electric car charging, park up, plug in and head off. But...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Electric Car Charging Stations Replaces Gas Station: Is This A First?
We’ve often heard people muse that electric car charging stations need to be as ubiquitous as the humble gas station. In fact, we’ve even encountered rare occasions where electric car charging stations are offered alongside regular and premium, but what if electric car charging stations...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Police Spotted In Electric Car Charging Space: Nobody Charged
Many town and city councils across the U.S. are introducing legislation to enable electric car owners to park for free as a way of encouraging more people to make the switch from gasoline to plug-in cars. Normally, these free parking spaces include access to a suitable level 2 charging station...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield