AltCarExpo kickoff party and a GM-centric altcar docu
Did you know the ferris wheel on the Santa Monica Pier is entirely solar-powered? This I learned for the first time at AltCarExpo Opening Event on Thursday, when Santa Monica Mayor Richard Bloom mentioned the factoid in his speech.
The event brought out exhibitors, sponsors and Santa Monica city officials -- including Councilman Kevin McKeown. We nibbled on very yummy vegan appetizers and sipped wine (none organic, unfortunately) before sitting down to watch a screening of the Transportation episode of PBS documentary series “e2: the economies of being environmentally conscious.”
Oddly, the episode focused almost entirely on GM cars: The Chevy Volt, which has a primarily electric engine with a gas backup, and the Chevrolet Sequel, a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle. But while these cars sound cool, and while Chevy's going to lend out hydrogen fuel cell SUVs for public test-driving in January, both cars are still years away from hitting the market!
Which made me wonder: Why weren't any of the other electric cars -- especially all-electric cars set to come on the mainstream market in the next year -- never even mentioned in e²? I don't know, but I'm heading over to the AltCarExpo now to test drive some of them --
You can watch each episode of e² -- narrated by Morgan Freeman and Brad Pitt -- for free online; each episode will be available via webcast in the week before the air date.
De-car-ing: Biked both ways.
