California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger loves things that start with H, like Hummers and California's Hydrogen Highway. Well, he used to anyway. We know about the Governator's move away from gas-guzzling Hummers and towards greener transportation options. A recent article in the New York Times (and in WIRED a year ago) show that Arnold's dream of a statewide network of 150-200 H2 fueling stations is slowly fading as well.
Schwarzenegger had begun pushing for the Hydrogen Highway not long after taking office in 2003. One of the highways' strongest supporters was/is Terry Tanminen, who likes the BMW Hydrogen 7 and he spoke many times (at the 2006 Alt Car Expo and the 2007 AFVI Show, for examle) on the benefits of hydrogen vehicles on Schwarzenegger's behalf. But now, over five years and countless dollars later, there are only 24 hydrogen fueling stations operating in California. What, oh what, will happen to all of those hydrogen-powered Prius hybrids?
Those of you who are against hydrogen-powered cars will like this: Gerhard Achtelik, manager of the hydrogen highway program at the Air Resources Board, told the Times that people have "not received the vehicles as quickly as we hoped." Pro-hydrogen car advocates will like this: Joan Ogden, director of the Sustainable Transportation Energy Pathways program at the University of California, Davis, told the Times that a zero-emissions vehicle rule that will go into effect in 2012 and requires automakers to make thousands of pure ZEVs will really drive the H2 vehicle market.
[Source: New York Times]
Schwarzenegger had begun pushing for the Hydrogen Highway not long after taking office in 2003. One of the highways' strongest supporters was/is Terry Tanminen, who likes the BMW Hydrogen 7 and he spoke many times (at the 2006 Alt Car Expo and the 2007 AFVI Show, for examle) on the benefits of hydrogen vehicles on Schwarzenegger's behalf. But now, over five years and countless dollars later, there are only 24 hydrogen fueling stations operating in California. What, oh what, will happen to all of those hydrogen-powered Prius hybrids?
Those of you who are against hydrogen-powered cars will like this: Gerhard Achtelik, manager of the hydrogen highway program at the Air Resources Board, told the Times that people have "not received the vehicles as quickly as we hoped." Pro-hydrogen car advocates will like this: Joan Ogden, director of the Sustainable Transportation Energy Pathways program at the University of California, Davis, told the Times that a zero-emissions vehicle rule that will go into effect in 2012 and requires automakers to make thousands of pure ZEVs will really drive the H2 vehicle market.
[Source: New York Times]
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