Posts Tagged ‘environment’

Avis sponsors second ever South African Solar Challenge

Friday, September 24th, 2010

Competitors in the second ever South African Solar Challenge have crossed the starting line and are battling it out in their solar powered vehicles. The race, which is expected to last 10 days and covers 4,000 miles, is being sponsored by car hire company Avis. The rental firm has committed 21 vehicles to provide support for the teams taking part in the event which aims to promote the benefits of alternative forms of energy.

Wayne Duvenage, Avis’ chief executive, said the company would be supplying six low emission hybrid Toyota Prius vehicles to illustrate its own commitment to sustainability and conservation.

This year’s event has attracted international teams from countries such as Germany, Iran and Japan. South African entrants include vehicles from the University of Johannesburg and the German School in Johannesburg.

Talking of the decision to sponsor the event, Duvenage said Avis was always looking to do more than was expected of it. He added that the race fitted with the firm’s ethos. Over the past few years Avis has invested in a number of projects aimed at reducing the impact the company has on the environment.

Having invested R2.5 million in recycling the water at its car wash facilities Avis is now saving 75 million litres of water a year and R1 million, according to Duvenage. The Avis boss added that it was also refitting its head office so that it can reduce energy use by around 30 per cent. The first solar powered vehicle is expected back in Pretoria on 2 October.

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Hertz encourages development of electric vehicle infrastructure

Wednesday, September 22nd, 2010

Hertz has announced its intention to use its leverage as one of the world’s leading car hire firms to promote electric powered vehicles. It aims to form strategic partnerships with other industry leaders to develop an infrastructure which is capable of supporting electric technology. The rental giant said it was in the perfect position to introduce the new technology across a wide and diverse range of customers.

Hertz’s electric vehicle programme is due to roll out over the coming months. It aims to introduce a range of electric and hybrid electric vehicles onto the market. In February, Hertz said it would be partnering with Nissan to bring its zero-emission, 100 per cent electric LEAF to select locations in Europe and the US.

Hertz also plans to work with manufacturers such as Toyota, GM and Mitsubishi in providing its customers with the option of choosing their electric powered vehicles. As well as providing vehicles and charging stations the Hertz Global Electric Vehicle programme will compliment the electric technology with new technology in other areas such as supplying the latest in Sat Nav and GPS systems.

Hertz boss, Mark P Frissora, said his company was in the perfect position to lead the world in new electric vehicle technology because of its global footprint, expertise in the car sharing and rental markets and excellent industry relationships.

Fred Krupp, of the Environmental Defence Fund, said he was extremely pleased to be working alongside Hertz in making sure that the new leap in technology was beneficial to consumers and the global environment.

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Enterprise to add Nissan LEAF to its fleet

Tuesday, September 21st, 2010

Enterprise customers in a number of major US cities will soon be able to book the Nissan LEAF at their local dealership. Enterprise Rent-A-Car has ordered 500 of the electric vehicles and they will start entering the car hire company’s fleet in December. Initially, the vehicles will be rolled out in seven major markets where the infrastructure already exists for maintenance and charging.

In preparation for the introduction of the cars Enterprise has taken delivery of a test LEAF which it will take around selected outlets to educate staff and customers about the new technology. Lee Broughton, director of sustainability at Enterprise, said he felt there was still a great deal of mystery when it comes to electric vehicles.

Broughton added that by taking the Nissan LEAF out to the firm’s customers and employees he hoped some of that mystery would begin to evaporate. He went on to say that Enterprise was in a perfect position to show people the tremendous advantages to choosing an electric vehicle next time they rent.

On a single charge the Nissan LEAF can cover around 100 miles. This makes it an ideal commuter car. It is also the car of choice for those who wish to do their bit for the environment. The vehicle can be charged in several ways including through a customer’s home outlet, at a public outlet or at a special high-speed charging outlet.

Broughton said that with the introduction of the Nissan LEAF to the Enterprise fleet, the company was showing just how committed it was to allowing cleaner, more efficient technologies to prove themselves in the marketplace.

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More car parking to be given to smaller cars

Friday, October 30th, 2009

People looking at hire a car should consider a smaller-sized car, as Environment intends to increase the number of small-car parking spaces in St Peter Port.

From next weekend the department plans to commence work on extending the designated parking scheme to Albert Pier and North Beach following a successful pilot project that took place on the Crown Pier.

At North Beach car park, 27 standard and 10 hour spaces will be merged to create 36 small-car spaces and 13 two-hour spaces at the end of the Albert Pier will go to become 16 smaller ones.  The idea was implemented to encourage the use of small cars, which the department says are better for the environment.

The news isn’t so good for commuters who have cars longer than 3.6 metres.

Some town workers voiced their concerns that they would now find it even more difficult to get the car park spaces that they need however, others were in favour of the move for its environmental and economic reasons.

Lee Hubert, an IT engineer, believes it wasn’t a good move be cause he uses the North Beach car park every day to commute to work.

He said that for economic reasons, he could see why it was a good idea, but for people who need to park and don’t have small cars it will be more difficult.

The small-car parking initiative was first launched in September 2005, creating 43 spaces for small cars at the Careening Hard arm of the Crown Pier.

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Less UK air travel good for the environment

Monday, October 19th, 2009

The UK’s Climate Change Committee has announced that a down turn in the British economy may have been good for the environment. It says that it has recorded a 2 percent drop in carbon emissions since 2008. One reason for this drop in emissions may well be the fact that more people decided to stay at home rather than splash out on an expensive summer holiday this year. This meant that less people were flying and that therefore less carbon was being pumped into the atmosphere. Airlines have been hit hard by the downturn, lack of customers and rising fuel prices, and as such have been cutting back on the amount of aircraft they have been putting into the air. All of this is bad for the carriers — but good for the climate.

The Climate Change Committee has, however, issued a warning that even with the help of a recession the country is still not on course for government emissions targets. In a recent study conducted by Loughborough University a worrying number of people said that they would not give up getting on an airplane for the sake of the environment. Only one quarter of those polled said that they would be happy not to get onto an aircraft any time in the next twelve months to help reduce carbon emissions.

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US Government bolsters fund for green auto research

Monday, September 28th, 2009

The moment that many environmentalists have long been waiting for is finally here. This week, the US government has announced that it has approved an expansion of government-led research for making cars and trucks more fuel-efficient.

The new plan means that the House will permit the Energy Department to spend a figure of up to $200 million extra each year on research and development for advanced-technology vehicles and auto parts.

It is expected that the additional $200 million will greatly enhance government-supported research in this area, taking the total funding available to around $550 million. It seems that this is just one in a series of measures adopted recently by Congress and the Obama administration to aid the auto industry.

Over the last few months the White House contributed billions of dollars in order to rescue General Motors and Chrysler and lead the companies through bankruptcy, while Congress also approved $25 billion last year to help the industry re-equip assembly plants so that they could meet tougher fuel economy standards.

The latest fuel-efficient technology is already highly sought after due to the steep rise in the prices of petrol and the anticipated tightening of auto regulations. It was revealed by administration officials early in the week that they plan to raise the fuel mileage standards to 35.5 miles per gallon by 2016 and link greenhouse gas emissions and fuel economy requirements.

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Qantas waits patiently for spring to arrive

Tuesday, September 22nd, 2009

While a number of airlines and travel companies have recently announced that they are starting to see a reversal in their fortunes as revenues start to rise once more after a lean few months, the same cannot be said for all companies.

This week Qantas released its annual report in which the airline revealed that it was uncertain whether or not it would ever be able to recover from the massive slump in air travel. The chairman of Qantas admitted in the report that the global economic outlook remains uncertain and the company is still waiting to see any substantial improvement in the underlying business conditions. However, Qantas still remain optimistic that the sun will soon shine on their business, and that the seeds they have so busily been sowing in establishing new flight programmes, deals and offers may soon start to sprout.

However, the report also indicated that although times are still tough for Qantas at thje moment they have what it takes to weather the storm and will be ready and waiting when things take a turn for the better.

Still, the airline has a lot of ground to make up as they posted back in August that they had suffered an 88% fall in their full-year net profit, taking them down to $117 million

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Europcar and Renault form lean, green partnership

Thursday, September 17th, 2009

Leading car hire company Europcar have just announced that they will be joining forces with car manufacturer Renault in order to provide customers with an innovative, environmentally friendly car hire package. Europcar will be utilizing Renault’s new range of electric cars, which will take pride of place amongst the company’s already extensive range of hire cars.

In addition, Europcar intends to establish a network of re-fuelling points for the electric powered vehicles throughout the country, allowing customers to save energy and help preserve the environment as they drive. Renault and Europcar are scheduled to sign a new agreement at the Frankfurt Motor Show, which is being held this week. Not only will this have an environmental impact, the new partnership will also generate extra cash for both companies.

In the last few months a number of other car hire companies have made attempts to do the same thing with regular cars as they allow customers to return their vehicle empty and charge for the cost of the fuel, thus allowing the car hire company to gain extra funds from one transaction. Electric recharging stations will soon become a regular feature as they are established throughout the country. It seems that fast food chain McDonalds is also trying to get in on the action as the company recently opened up an electric charging service. Renault’s new car is planned to go into production in 2011 with the first vehicle being available to buy from 2012.

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Europcar and Fiat make clean, green team

Thursday, September 3rd, 2009

Leading car hire company Europcar has just announced that it is forming a partnership with car manufacturer Fiat in order to offer its customers a new range of environmentally friendly vehicles. The new Fiat models include the eco-friendly Punto, Grand Punto, Idea, 500, Panda, Qubo and Bravo.

This is just one stage in Europcar’s plan to become more eco-friendly, which began in 2008 when Europcar became the first European car hire company to be awarded with the Green Charter, an honour granted by Bureau Veritas in recognition of the company’s green initiatives.

Jehan de Thè is Europcar’s Global Marketing Director. In a recent interview he outlined Europcar’s plans for the future: “Europcar is pioneering an eco-friendly approach to car rental through a number of ground-breaking initiatives. In particular, Europcar undertakes to offer to its customers a vehicle fleet with the minimum possible impact on the environment.” Thè also went on to explain that Europcar had chosen to work with Fiat in particular as they are: “the best-selling brand ranked by volumes-weighted average CO2 emissions.”

In addition to the partnership with Fiat, Europcar is taking a number of other steps to reach environmentally-conscious consumers.

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10:10 campaign cuts into travel industry

Wednesday, September 2nd, 2009

The 10:10 campaign, which encourages people to cut their carbon emissions by 10% during 2010, kicked off yesterday with a huge rally in front of Tate Modern. The event was attended by celebrities, politicians, artists, and people from just about every walk of life.

The environmental campaign urges people to make small sacrifices on an individual level that will cut each person’s carbon footprint. The hope is that when these small efforts are taken together, as a whole, a significant effect on climate change will occur.

Numerous comments were made at the rally and subsequently in interviews concerning the need to cut back on air travel. In fact the campaign has a whole category of advice aimed at cutting back on air travel.

The airline industry has been devastated recently by falling demand. Just this week SkyEurope airline went bankrupt. Other airlines like British Airways have had to undertake drastic cost cutting measures to stay afloat. Ryanair has been reducing routes and completely pulled out of Manchester Airport recently.

It’s unclear whether cuts in airline travel by the participants of 10:10 will have a further negative effect on the airline industry in the coming year, but airline officials are sure to take notice.

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