Tesla Motors announced Roadster 2.5, the latest generation of its electric sports car. It will debut simultaneously with the opening of Tesla's two new stores in Copenhagen, Denmark, and Newport Beach, Calif. The new Roadster includes improvements in both design and technology, according to a company release, including a new front fascia, rear diffuser, improved seat comfort and internal finishes, sound dampening and a large touchscreen navigation system.
Cameras Fail to ID Toll Violators
Hundreds of thousands of drivers are getting a free ride on Dallas-area toll roads even as tollway authorities hammer others with huge fines to recoup their losses. The reason: The camera system that is fast replacing human toll-takers routinely fails to identify customers who use the roads without a TollTag. As a result, 28 percent of drivers without TollTags are never even billed. Dallas Morning News
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Yes Virginia, There is a Flying Car
The Transition's creators have dubbed the two-seater vehicle a "roadable aircraft." It can drive on any surface, and, thanks to its foldable wings, can transform into a personal airplane. It can fly at a speed of 115 mph and has a 460-mile range. It "requires a 1,700-foot (one-third of a mile) runway to take off and can fit in a standard garage." The "flying car" is expected to retail for $194,000. Huffington Post
DOE Awards $24 Million for Algal Biofuels Research
The U.S. Department of Energy announced its selection of three research consortia to receive up to $24 million to tackle commercialization of algae-based biofuels. The selections will support the development of a clean, sustainable transportation sector and creation of jobs in the domestic bio-industry while helping cut greenhouse gas emissions and dependence on fossil fuels. The three consortia include partners from academia, national laboratories, and private industries located across the country. Projects are expected to continue for three years.
Doubts on High-Speed Rail Ridership
Ridership forecasts used by the California High Speed Rail Authority to help plan the statewide fast train system are unreliable, according to a UC Berkeley study released last week. The report, ordered by the state Senate Transportation and Housing Committee but paid for by the High-Speed Rail Authority, found that the statistical process used to calculate ridership projections was seriously flawed and inconsistent. San Francisco Chronicle
Washington to Build "Electric Highway"
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Roundabouts Make Cheap Intersections
Delaware is one of many states that are embracing roundabouts for intersections. Rhode Island, Georgia, Maryland, Nebraska and Indiana are among others where roundabouts have been built and where more are planned. Engineers say they are safer, quieter, more environmentally friendly and can be cheaper than building intersections with signs or signals. Converting a traditional intersection to a roundabout led on average to a 35 percent drop in crashes and a 76 percent drop in fatal or serious injury crashes, according to a 2007 study of 55 sites by the National Cooperative Highway Research Program of the National Academies. USA Today
Unique Bridge Reconciles Right and Left-Lane Motorists
One of the most vexing aspects of traveling between mainland China and Hong Kong is the car travel: People in the former drive on the right side of the road; people in the latter drive on the left (a vestige of the British empire). So to quell confusion at the border and, more importantly, to keep cars from smashing into each other, the Dutch firm NL Architects proposed a brilliant, simple solution, the Flipper bridge. Fast Company
