In May 2019, Providence welcomed a fleet of autonomous shuttles to offer free transit service for a five-mile loop between Providence Station and Olneyville Square. The pilot program, called Little Roady, is a collaborative effort between the Rhode Island Department of Transportation and May Mobility, a Michigan-based tech company that has deployed autonomous shuttles in Detroit, Michigan, Grand Rapids, Michigan, and Columbus, Ohio.
We take great pride in the fact that we, along with a company called Good Energy, took the model of municipal aggregation (a.k.a. community choice energy) and made it truly green. We did so with our pioneer partners, the City of Melrose and the town of Dedham. In 2016, those communities used the buying power of their residents to secure an affordable electricity rate that includes more local renewable energy than required by state law. Since then, over a dozen communities have joined the movement and added more renewable energy to residents' electricity supply - most recently Medford, Bedford, and Rockland. Green Energy Consumers is proud to be providing that additional incremental amount of renewable energy.
In our September 11 webinar, we took a deep dive into electric vehicle (EV) batteries to understand the technology and how it will impact the automotive industry in the next decade. Find a recording of the webinar and a brief summary below.
Thanks to everyone who attended our Electric Vehicles 101 webinar on August 21! In case you missed it, here a short recap of what we talked about and the answers to some popular questions.
This week, I’m headed to a conference in the Big Apple to talk about how we need to electrify transportation and heating. I looked at my options for getting there. Flying was the quickest, but emitted the most. And inspired in large part by 16-year old climate activist, Greta Thunberg, I couldn’t choose a plane. I thought about taking my wind powered Chevy Bolt, but I didn’t want to drive through the city and Brooklyn doesn’t need another car. So I will be on Amtrak. Maybe I’ll get some work done while riding. There’s a good chance I will nap.
Here at Green Energy Consumers Alliance, we believe in practical ways for people to make green energy choices. You’re probably already aware that there are dozens of decisions you can make in your life to reduce your carbon footprint. But the carbon footprint of other people? As described in the news recently, it turns out that we can get others to act on climate by simply talking with them about it.
Most drivers have probably had at least one experience in which they asked themselves, “Am I going to run out of gas?” Range anxiety, or the fear a car will run out of fuel before it reaches its destination, is not unique to electric cars. It is, however, a commonly-cited reason that drivers use to justify driving gasoline-powered cars when their electric counterparts are cheaper to own, better for the environment, and more fun to drive.
During periods of extreme heat, higher electricity demand is met with dirty, inefficient fossil fuel electricity generation. At the same time, heat exacerbates the effects of pollution because high temperatures and sunlight trigger chemical reactions that transform emissions from tailpipes and power generation into smog, creating unhealthy levels of ground-level ozone. The additional air pollution contributes to climate change and worsens local air quality. The health and environmental impacts of climate changing emissions are becoming more prevalent as extreme weather days occur more often.
It’s imperative that we all switch from internal combustion engines to electric cars for several compelling reasons. The most important is that reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions enough to save the planet depends upon it. But what’s particularly exciting is: we can magnify the benefits of EVs by managing when we charge them.
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