Results tagged “hybrid”

Bell Cab introduced the city's first hybrid taxis in Los Angeles today in what politicians hope is the just the first of many in the city's fleet of 2,303. Controller-Elect and current Transportation Committee Chair, Councilmember Wendy Greuel requested the city to create a green taxi plan and today challenged other cab companies to follow suit. "Taxi's in Los Angeles might be different colors on the outside, but my goal is for them all to be green on the inside," she said.

Federal stimulus funds are bound for Santa Monica, where their Big Blue Bus has plans for the $12.8 million, according to Yahoo!Business. The funds come with the stipulation they be "used for capital expenditures and not for operating costs or service enhancements."

What's free to hybrid drivers costs the city $300,000 annually. With the budget taking a dive into the red, the LA City Council today voted to end free parking at meters for hybrids beginning in March. "Hybrid vehicle owners who park at meters during the month of February will be given written notices about the end of free parking," notes NBC.

                  

If you're in need of an escape from the forced awkward conversations with relatives that turkey and a day off from work brings, head downtown to the Convention Center and check out the LA Auto Show. All of the manufacturers you've heard of and a bunch you've never heard of, found enough money in their budgets to make the trip and fortunately they brought some of their best new cars with them. Ford premiered the 2010 Mustang, Mini unveiled an all-electric ride and Nissan busted out a cube-shaped vehicle cleverly titled Cube (For more new cars making their premiere at the LA Auto Show Jalopnik has their Top 10 Reveals).

There's only 120 taxis operating in Burbank, but twenty of them have been hybrids since May. Cities across that nation have already started programs (NYC plans to have all 13,000 taxis to be hybrid in 5 years) but Los Angeles is a little behind with its 2,303 fleet. "We're researching the issue very carefully. We want to do it right," said Tom Drischler, taxicab administrator for Los Angeles, to the LA Times in the Burbank hybrid article. "We really want to get something going this year. We hope to present a program to the Board of Taxi Commissioners this fall." One hurdle for officials to solve is the safety partition, which is hard to put in a hybrid. Before they were mandated, a cabbie was being murdered about every 18 months.

LAist Featured Photos contributor KeithJ recently found this SMUD plug-in Prius on the streets of Monrovia. Considering the price of gas, even drivers of "traditional" hybrid vehicles like the Prius are feeling the pain at the pump (albeit in smaller quantities). Maybe it will be sooner than we think when our streets are clogged with even more popular fuel efficient vehicles like plug-in hybrids...Could be something worth getting all charged up about, hmmm?

Since the perk of giving Hybrid owners a free ride when it comes to Los Angeles city parking meters has been in the news lately, the always fiscally conservative Daily News opined on the issue today: "The right thing is for the council to kill the hybrid car perk."

Dear LAist; So the City Council changed the law for hybrid car parking on Friday, then reneged it yesterday. So as of today, what the hell can I do?

Today, the LA City Council extended a program allowing owners of hybrid owners of certain makes to park for free at city meters. The program went into effect for a total of three years, in which the city would study it to determine its success and advantages or lack thereof.

The United States Postal Service furthered its efforts to embrace new, green technologies this week, even as these technologies eat away at the USPS' age-old business model of letter delivery.

"The state has so far received 74,108 applications for an allotment of 75,000 decals permitting hybrid owners to drive solo in HOV lanes." ~ L.A. Times Blogging.LA does the math on hate crimes in LA: "...for every one hate crime in San Diego and San Francisco counties combined, there were five in Los Angeles. By any explanation, that's a lot of hate." Pasadena goes WiFi. (via LA Voice) In city politics and news, fines...