(Source: Flight Global & eweek.com)

Promising the fastest Wi-Fi in the sky, Row 44’s satellite-based airline broadband service wins operating approval from the Federal Communications Commission.

In a move that could usher in a new era for airborne communications the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has green-lighted Row 44’s application to operate an aeronautical mobile-satellite service (AMSS) in the conventional Ku-band segment.

The award, being heralded by Row 44 as “a major victory”, comes one month after Alaska Airlines and Southwest Airlines urged the FCC to finally approve the California-based firm’s application, which had come under persistent fire from would-be rival ViaSat.

Alaska and Southwest are trialing Row 44’s high-speed broadband system on a total five Boeing 737s. Their ability to expand the service fleet-wide hinged upon the approval of Row 44’s application.

As recently as 29 July, ViaSat asked the FCC to refrain from granting authority to Row 44. But Row 44 persevered, learning this week that it had received the crucial operating license from the FCC.

The license, together with the license already granted to Row 44 in Canada and a ‘right to operate’ agreement in Mexico, allows Row 44 to provide uninterrupted airborne Internet service throughout the North American continent, and brings it ever closer to providing near global coverage.

The FCC ruling states :

With this Order, we grant blanket authority to Row 44, Inc. (Row 44) for domestic operation of up to 1,000 technically identical transmit/receive aircraft earth stations in the Aeronautical Mobile Satellite Service (AMSS). The aircraft earth stations will operate in the conventional Ku-band, transmitting in 14.05-14.47 GHz and receiving in 11.7-12.2 GHz. We also grant Row 44 a waiver of the U.S. Table of Frequency Allocations (Table of Allocations) to permit its operations in the 11.7-12.2 GHz band. These earth stations will be used to communicate via leased transponders on three geostationary satellites: Horizon 1 at 127º W.L., operated by Intelsat LLC; and AMC-2 at 101º W.L. and AMC-9 at 83º W.L., operated by SES Americom, Inc. Today’s grant will allow Row 44 to provide two-way, in-flight broadband services to passengers and flight crews aboard commercial airliners and private aircraft. We believe that implementation of Row 44’s AMSS system, pursuant to this authorization, will enhance competition in an important sector of the mobile telecommunications market in the United States.

Row 44 holds the distinction of being the first Ku-band-based connectivity service provider to operate in the commercial sector following the late 2006 demise of Connexion by Boeing.

The Row 44 system provides downlink data rates averaging 30M bps and 620K bps maximum in the uplink direction. Along with providing broadband for passengers, Row 44’s technology also provides airlines a broadband link for operational data. The system weighs less than 150 pounds.

Aircell, Row 44’s competitor in providing airline Wi-Fi, uses ground-to-airplane technology. American Airlines, Delta Air Lines and Virgin America are using Aircell technology on selected flights and AirTrans plans to deploy broadband Internet access using Aircell on every flight across its entire fleet of Boeing 737 and 717 aircraft.

Row 44’s major system components include a low-profile antenna mounted to the top of the fuselage. Four compact line-replaceable units are installed above the cabin headlining just below the antenna: a server management unit, a high power amplifier, an antenna control unit and a modem data unit. To distribute a Wi-Fi signal, one or more wireless access units are placed in the airplane cabin.

Row 44 claims its satellite-based system provides the fastest Wi-Fi in the air. The system is supported by the global infrastructure of Hughes Network Systems. “No longer will an airline be forced to accept an unattractive compromise between the performance it can offer and the service price it must charge,” Row 44’s CEO John Guidon said.

While North American regulators do not currently permit in-flight mobile phone calls or SMS text messaging, the Row 44 system will support these services, notes Row 44. It says it intends to offer these services to airline customers throughout the world, wherever such activities are permitted and requested by airlines.

Click here to read the entire article.

(Source: The Infrastructurist)

The author make a convincing case for upping transit investments and transit-oriented development to make our systems efficient and suggests some drastic measures, which are considered often “basic” in the pro-transit world.  The summary goes like tihs: “The move toward a world where we need more alternatives to single-person auto travel is going to happen regardless of  US politicians. It would be better if we tried to get ahead of that curve. Lazrus is probably right to be gloomy about that–but wrong to be gloomy about the long-term prospects of transit and rail.”  If you are a transit nut, this is definitely worth a read.  Enjoy!

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Yesterday’s dispatch from LA Times business writer David Lazarus has a great lede: “It’s hard to appreciate how truly pitiful our public transportation system is until you spend some time with a system that works.” Many of us know that feeling.

Then he gushes about the consistently reliable, affordable and convenient transit systems in Japan. “I rode just about every form of public transit imaginable — bullet trains, express trains, commuter trains, subways, street cars, monorails and buses.” All fabulous, of course.

Then there’s that age old question of replicating it here in this place we call America. Lazarus argues that even if you build great transit and high speed rail networks people won’t use them in sufficient numbers unless you also strongly penalize car travel. Carrot and stick. But how to discourage auto use? Like this:

• Make driving more expensive with higher gas taxes and road fees
• Make parking much pricier and less convenient all over the country
• Redevelop our cities and suburbs to make them denser and more conducive to transit and rail travel

Pretty basic stuff, though Lazarus chooses to characterize this broader process as “making our cities less comfortable” and says he “simply can’t imagine political leaders at the local, state or federal level telling voters that they support a big increase in gas taxes, sky-high parking fees and high-density neighborhoods.”

That fact essentially seals the fate of transit and passenger rail, he argues.

Let’s assume for the sake of argument he’s right that politicians will never act to make driving meaningfully more expensive. Should we abandon hope for transit and passenger rail that doesn’t suck?

No. Potentially for two reasons, in fact.

Click here to read the entire article.

(Source: Economic Policy Institute)

Not even the most optimisitic American could have envisioned this soaring  popularity of “Car Allowance Rebate System” (CARS) — better known as “cash for clunkers.” CARS has proven to be very popular, and the $1 billion originally slated for credits appears to have been all but exhausted less than a week after the program went into effect. and is now awaiting another $2B lifeline, which is expected to come through after the Senate vote.

The program has already prompted thousands of Americans to upgrade older, less fuel efficient cars and is generating much-needed sales for troubled automobile manufacturers and related industries while decreasing gasoline consumption and improving environmental outcomes. But has there been an attempt to quantify these  impacts on fuel efficiency and environment? Yes.  The Economic Policy Insititute analyzes the fuel efficiency improvements & emissions reductions and made it easy for us to understand.  Here is a quick peek at the study & the awesome graphic that explains the cost savings in fueling a clunker vs. a new car.  The study methodology involves the following elements:

• Study authors assumed that the average credit is $4,000 and that all of the $1 billion is spent on credits, thus producing 250,000 trade-ins.
• The average miles driven per year — 14,450 — is the per vehicle estimate from the US Department of Transportation for 2006, the latest available data.
• Used forecasted annual gas price of $2.36/gallon from the Department of Energy.
• Derive CO2 emissions from the EPA and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, who assume that 1 gallon of automobile gasoline is equivalent to 19.4 pounds of CO2.
• 58% of all crude oil is from foreign sources and that 44% of all crude oil goes to gasoline production (both estimates from the Department of Energy for 2008).

Based on these assumptions, the study team has determined that the fuel economy improvements will save an estimated $821 per traded vehicle annually (see chart above).  How? Reduced gas consumption means less dependence on foreign oil, and more money in the pockets of consumers that could be used for domestic consumption. According to the Department of Transportation, the average fuel efficiency of old cars traded in via the program is 15.8 miles per gallon, while new cars had an average MPG of 25.4.

On average, total gas consumption will drop by 87 million gallons per year, and American consumers will use 22.2 million fewer barrels of foreign crude oil. The environmental impact of reduced gas consumption is considerable as well. We estimate that the program will result in about 850,000 fewer tons of CO2 emissions per year (3.4 tons per vehicle annually). This reduction equals more than two-thirds of the annual CO2 emissions linked to household electricity, heating, and waste.

Click here to read the entire article. (Hat tip @NPR)

(Source: DOE & Tree Hugger)

President Obama was in Indiana yesterday to announce how $2.4 billion dollars from the Recovery Act will be divided up between 48 different battery and electric vehicle projects.”If we want to reduce our dependence on oil, put Americans back to work and reassert our manufacturing sector as one of the greatest in the world, we must produce the advanced, efficient vehicles of the future,” said President Obama. “With these investments, we’re planting the seeds of progress for our country and good-paying, private-sector jobs for the American people,” he said.

“For our nation and our economy to recover, we must have a vision for what can be built here in the future – and then we need to invest in that vision,” said Vice President Biden. “That’s what we’re doing today and that’s what this Recovery Act is about.”

“These are incredibly effective investments that will come back to us many times over – by creating jobs, reducing our dependence on foreign oil, cleaning up the air we breathe, and combating climate change,” said Energy Secretary Steven Chu. “They will help achieve the President’s goal of putting one million plug-in hybrid vehicles on the road by 2015. And, most importantly, they will launch an advanced battery industry in America and make our auto industry cleaner and more competitive.”

The announcement marks the single largest investment in advanced battery technology for hybrid and electric-drive vehicles ever made. Industry officials expect that this $2.4 billion investment, coupled with another $2.4 billion in cost share from the award winners, will result directly in the creation tens of thousands of manufacturing jobs in the U.S. battery and auto industries.

So Where’s All That Money Going?

The money is going to three main categories of projects:

• $1.5 billion in grants to U.S. based manufacturers to produce batteries and their components and to expand battery recycling capacity;
• $500 million in grants to U.S. based manufacturers to produce electric drive components for vehicles, including electric motors, power electronics, and other drive train components; and
• $400 million in grants to purchase thousands of plug-in hybrid and all-electric vehicles for test demonstrations in several dozen locations; to deploy them and evaluate their performance; to install electric charging infrastructure; and to provide education and workforce training to support the transition to advanced electric transportation systems.

Most of the grant winners are familiar names, with Detroit firms getting a substantial share. But who’s the biggest winner? Here are some of the winners:

• Johnson Controls: $299.2 million for the production of nickel-cobalt-metal battery cells and packs, as well as production of battery separators (by partner Entek) for hybrid and electric vehicles.
• A123 Systems: $249.1 million for the manufacturing of nano-iron phosphate cathode powder and electrode coatings; fabrication of battery cells and modules; and assembly of complete battery pack systems for hybrid and electric vehicles.
• General Motors: $105.9 million for the production of high-volume battery packs for the GM Volt (the cells will be from LG Chem, Ltd. and other cell providers to be named), plus another $105 million for the construction of U.S. manufacturing capabilities to produce the second-generation GM global rear-wheel electric drive system. That’s not all. There’s also another $30.5 million to develop, analyze, and demonstrate hundreds of Chevrolet Volt Extended Range Electric Vehicles (EREVs) –125 Volt PHEVs for electric utilities and 500 Volt PHEVs to consumers. (for a total of $241.4 million)

The complete list of the 48 grants can be found here (pdf).

(Source: Tree Hugger)

During last week, many of us watched Nissan unveil its electric car, Leaf.  Those who where in Yokohoma, Japan for the unveiling had a chance to test drive the vehicle and get a demonstration of the technology behind the vehicle.  Our friends from Tree Hugger were kind enough to bring us a little more than what the rest of mdeia has offered thus far.   In an exclusive article, Tree hugger explains Nissan’s technology demonstration that utilizes the internet technology to interface with its electric vehicles. Check out the exclusive video (via You Tube) and a collection of pictures here.

As you can see in this quick demo, the car sends info to an Apple iPhone via a dedicated global data center. The software tells the user about the car’s state of charge, the cost to charge at a given hour of the day, and sends alerts when it’s fully juiced up.

Nissan also expects this is how drivers may program what times of day they want to charge up. Since tiered electricity billing is becoming more common (especially with the spread of smart meters), customers will want to charge their cars when it’s cheapest.

This smartphone interface also lets the user activate or pre-program the car’s climate control. This is important because heating and air conditioning draw a considerable amount of power, so it’s better to draw from the grid when plugged in, rather than once the car is on the road and running on its battery.

Although this interface isn’t likely to appear on the first-generation Leaf when it comes out in late 2010, Nissan has assured us that this is not just eye candy, and that smartphone connectivity is a feature that will make it to market.

Click here to read the entire article.

(Source: Green Car Congress)

This post is sponsored by LemonFree.com

Buoyed by the US government’s CARS (“Cash for Clunkers”) program, US auto sales slowed their decline in the US in July, dropping on 12.1% to 997,824 units, accordingto summary figures from AutoData. Passenger car sales dropped 10.6% to 554, 527 units, while light truck sales dropped 14.1% to 443, 297 units. All comparisons are by volume. As a result, the SAAR for July surged to 11.24 million units; US SAAR had been below 10 million since January.

Hybrids had an especially good month, with reported sales jumping 31.8% year-on-year to 35,429 units, representing a 3.55% new vehicle sales market share for the month—the highest monthly share yet. Hybrid gains were largely due to an increase in Prius sales (up 29.7% to 19,173 units) and Ford hybrids (up 323% to 5,353 units).

According to the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, CARS sales reflected demand for more fuel-efficient vehicles:

• Ford reported a 9 mpg increase from trade-in vehicle to new vehicle purchase;
• GM reported a 54% increase in small car sales since the CARS program was launched;
• 57% of Mazdas sold so far under the program were fuel-efficient Mazda 3’s;
• 78% of Toyota’s CARS sales volume consists of Corolla, Prius, Camry, RAV 4 and Tacoma, which average a combined 30 mpg;
• Volkswagen reports more than 60% of its CARS sales are clean diesel Jetta TDIs which get an EPA combined 34 mpg.

Here is a quick snapshot of sales volume by manufacturer (in the hybrid category):

• GM delivered a total of 1,487 hybrid vehicles were delivered in the month, up 36.3% year-on-year.
• Ford’s fuel-efficient vehicles pace July sales results. Ford had an exceptionally strong month with hybrid sales, up 323% year-on-year to 5,353 units.
• Toyota Motor Sales (TMS) posted July sales of 24,295 hybrid vehicles, up 19.3% from the same period last year.
• Total sales of the fuel-efficient Honda Civic increased 3.1% to 30,037. Sales of the Civic Hybrid, however, plunged 71.8% to 969 units year-on-year. The new Honda Insight hybrid posted 2,295 units.
• Nissan sold 1,030 units of the Altima hybrid, up 44.1% year-on year.

Our friends at Jalopnik yesterday published a revised list of ten most purchased vehicles under the Cash for Clunkers program:

1. Ford Focus

2. Toyota Corolla

3. Honda Civic

4. Toyota Prius

5. Toyota Camry

6. Ford Escape FWD

7. Hyundai Elantra

8. Dodge Caliber

9. Honda Fit

10. Chevrolet Cobalt

Click here to read the entire report.

(Source: AP Via Yahoo & Time)

“Cash for clunkers” could have the same effect on global warming pollution as shutting down the entire country — every automobile, every factory, every power plant — for an hour per year. That could rise to three hours if the program is extended by Congress and remains as popular as it is now.

Climate experts aren’t impressed.

Compared to overall carbon dioxide emissions in the United States, the pollution savings from cash for clunkers do not noticeably move the fuel gauge. Environmental experts say the program — conceived primarily to stimulate the economy and jump-start the auto industry — is not an effective way to attack climate change.

“As a carbon dioxide policy, this is a terribly wasteful thing to do,” said Henry Jacoby, a professor of management and co-director of the Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change at MIT. “The amount of carbon you are saving per federal expenditure is very, very small.”

Officials expect a quarter-million gas guzzlers will be junked under the original $1 billion set aside by Congress — money that is now all but exhausted.

Calculations by The Associated Press, using Department of Transportation figures, show that replacing those fuel hogs will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by just under 700,000 tons a year. While that may sound impressive, it’s nothing compared to what the U.S. spewed last year: nearly 6.4 billion tons (and that was down from previous years).

That means on average, every hour, America emits 728,000 tons of carbon dioxide. The total savings per year from cash for clunkers translates to about 57 minutes of America’s output of the chief greenhouse gas.

Likewise, America will be using nearly 72 million fewer gallons of gasoline a year because of the program, based on the first quarter-million vehicles replaced. U.S. drivers go through that amount of gas every 4 1/2 hours, according to the Department of Energy.

Time Magazine reports that initial data released by Department of Transportation, however, shows that so far cash for clunkers has been a green success. The clunkers averaged 15.8 m.p.g., compared with 25.4 m.p.g. for the new vehicles purchased, for an average fuel-economy increase of 61%. On the whole, American drivers are trading in inefficient trucks and SUVs for much more efficient passenger cars. Car manufacturers like Nissan are already retooling some models to improve their fuel economy so they can qualify for the credits. The early numbers were enough to convince California Senator Dianne Feinstein to go from criticizing cash for clunkers as too lax to supporting additional funding for the bill in the Senate. “This program has done much better than we ever thought it would for the environment,” she told reporters on Aug. 4.

It’s called the efficiency paradox: as we get more efficient at using energy — through less wasteful cars and appliances — the overall cost of energy goes down, but we respond by using more of it. In the case of cars, that means driving more. Ultimately our gas bill stays the same, but we spend more time on the road and pump the same amount of greenhouse-gas emissions into the atmosphere. The earth isn’t any better off.

To address the emissions problem directly, we need to look at fuel, not Fords: institute carbon taxes that raise the price of gas. We already know that higher gas prices discourage driving and reduce greenhouse-gas emissions — total vehicle miles traveled in the U.S. declined 3.6% in 2008 compared with the previous year, thanks largely to the sky-high price of gas for much of 2008. (The recession didn’t help, but sharp declines in driving began well before the bottom dropped out of the economy.) As gas prices have fallen in 2009, however, driving has begun to tick back up.

Click here to read the entire article.

Webinar Overview TSAG Case Studies Workshop and Webinar A Rural Emergency Incident Utah US Route 163 Motor Coach Crash Date: August 26, 2009 Time: 9:00 AM–12:00 Noon, Pacific Time (12:00 – 3:00 PM EST) Cost: All T3s are free of charge PDH: 3.0. — Webinar participants are responsible for determining eligibility of these PDHs within their profession. Register On-line Contact the T3 Administrator Note: This workshop and webinar is a unique learning opportunity offered by the Transportation Safety Advancement Group (TSAG) and the ITS Professional Capacity Building Program’s Talking Technology & Transportation (T3) Program at the ITS Joint Program Office, U.S. DOT. The workshop will be presented to a live audience at the workshop location as well as to remote T3 webinar participants. T3 participants are invited to submit written questions before the Webinar as well as during workshop question and answer periods. Webinar participants may attend remotely for any portion of the 3-hour workshop. An audio of the event’s proceedings, synchronized with its presentations, will be available in the T3 Webinar archives approximately 4 weeks after the workshop. Background The Transportation Safety Advancement Group (TSAG) is facilitated and administered by the Intelligent Transportation Society of America (ITS America). Through its Workshop series and related work, TSAG provides input to the US Department of Transportation (US DOT), ITS Joint Program Office’s public safety mission. TSAG advises the ITS Joint Program Office on the development and deployment ITS technologies that optimize travel mobility, safety, economy, and environmental quality. Through its broad based membership comprised of transportation and public safety professionals, TSAG initiates programs that promote inter-disciplinary, inter-agency and inter-jurisdictional coordination and cooperation, and that promote partnerships for advancing surface transportation services technologies. For more information, visit the TSAG website. TSAG operates through resources provided by the US Department of Transportation and serves its program mission in compliance with US DOT regulations, policies and specified contract provisions. Utah US Route 163 Motor Coach Crash On January 6, 2008, at about 3:15 p.m. MST, a fifty-six passenger motor coach with a driver and 52 passengers on board departed Telluride, CO, en route to Phoenix, AZ, as part of a 17-motorcoach charter caravan returning from a 3-day ski trip. The normal route from Telluride to Phoenix along Colorado State Route 145 was closed due to snow and the lead caravan driver planned an alternate route that included US Route 163/191 through Utah. At about 8:02 PM, the motor coach, traveling southbound was descending a 5.6-percent grade leading to a curve to the left, 1,800 feet north of milepost 29 on U.S. Route 163. The weather was cloudy, and the roadway was dry. After entering the curve, the motor coach departed the right side of the roadway at a shallow angle, striking the guardrail with its right-rear wheel and lower coach body about 61 feet before the end of the guardrail. The coach traveled some 350 feet along the fore slope with the right tires off the roadway. The coach overturned, striking several rocks at the bottom of the embankment and came to rest on its wheels. During the 360-degree rollover, the roof of the motor coach separated from the body, and 50 of the 53 occupants were ejected. As a result of the crash, 9 passengers were fatally injured and 43 passengers and the driver received injuries, ranging from minor to serious. Case Studies Workshop & Webinar Overview Case Studies Workshop presenters will walk the audience through the details of the incident, including pre-crash, crash, and post-crash conditions and activities. The Workshop will focus on emergency response and management strategies and technologies, including communications between and among Police, Emergency Medical Services Utah DOT Transportation Operations personnel. Workshop presenters will discuss successes, failures and lessons learned and will highlight emergency response activities of local and regional emergency responders and will review operations strategies and technologies at the time of and in response to the incident. Target Audience Workshop participants include TSAG members, NRITS registrants, the T3 Webinar/ITS community, and other guests. Webinar target audience includes state and local public safety interests, including public safety managers and transportation operations, emergency communications, and emergency public safety practitioners. Additionally, private and academic and safety and technology research interests are encouraged to participate. TSAG Case Study Workshop Concept and Purpose The TSAG Case Studies Workshop concept targets case-studies of actual incidents or events associated with each of the eight (8) TSAG interest-community teams. TSAG communities of Interest include: Academic & Research Emergency Communications Emergency Management Emergency Medical Services Transportation Operations Fire and Safety Law Enforcement Technology and Telematics Thus, through reviews of actual recent events, incidents, and first-responder experiences, Case Studies Workshops facilitate after-event discussions by multi-discipline and multi-agency professionals for the purpose of: Clarifying actual circumstances of the event / incident Reviewing established response protocols and procedures Reviewing public safety technology applications Identifying unique management and response circumstances and challenges Reviewing successes, failures, and lessons-leaned The TSAG Case Studies Workshop & Webinar series is focused on the fundamental TSAG “technologies for public safety” TSAG mission. Learning Objectives The broad learning objectives of the TSAG Case Studies Workshop series include: Identify transportation-safety technologies and their real-time applications to operations surveillance and management Identify incident identification, emergency response and management Identify inter-agency and inter-discipline coordination and communications Learn of technology successes, failures, and lessons-learned Federal Host: Linda Dodge, Chief of Staff, US DOT, ITS Joint Program Office Workshop Presenters: John Leonard, Utah Department of Transportation As Traffic & Safety Operations Engineer, John Leonard evaluates the operational characteristics of projects, and coordinates their safety and efficiency aspects with UDOT project teams to determine that operational safety objectives are addressed. He participates in project reviews and promotes consensus opportunities to enhance safety outcomes and best practices. John manages resource and training activity for UDOT regions, private contractors and headquarters leadership. Through application of Context Sensitive Solutions, he promotes enhancement of UDOT relationships with public interests and identifies enhancements to serve the needs of UDOT partners and external customers. John assisted the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) in their investigation of the Utah, Route 163 Motor Coach crash. He is a member of the Institute of Transportation Engineers and the National Traffic Incident Management Coalition. Sergeant Jeff Nigbur, Utah Department of Public Safety Sergeant Jeff Nigbur is the lead Public Information Officer for the Utah Department of Public Safety. He oversees public information activities for all divisions within the department, including the Utah Highway Patrol, State Crime Lab, Bureau of Criminal Identification, Utah Division of Homeland Security and State Fire Marshal, among others. Jeff has been involved with several high profile cases such as the Crandall Canyon Mine Disaster, Milford Flat Fire, the USU Van Roll-Over and other media awareness campaigns. Jeff received his Associates of Science degree in Criminal Justice in 2004 from Salt Lake Community College. He later earned a Bachelors degree in Criminal Justice Administration from the University of Phoenix. Jeff is currently a motor squad instructor, DPS dive team master diver, and a member of the Utah Department of Public Safety’s SWAT team. Linda Larson, San Juan County, Emergency Medical Services Ms Larson has been in the EMS field for nine years and is the Director of San Juan County EMS Bureau, providing EMS services to one of the largest Utah counties plus portions of the Navaho Nation in Utah. She also serves as Assistant Team Leader for the Utah Department of Health, Bureau of EMS southeastern EMS Strike Team. Linda had a key role in the 2008 Motor Coach crash, declaring the crash a Mass Casualty Incident and engaging multiple agencies and multiple evacuation strategies. She managed on scene medical coordination and transportation from surrounding counties and adjacent State agencies. Ultimately the incident involved 4 air transport teams from multiple states, and the activation of the State of Utah, Bureau of EMS Strike Teams and CISM Team. Reference in this webinar to any specific commercial products, processes, or services, or the use of any trade, firm or corporation name is for the information and convenience of the public, and does not constitute endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by U.S. Department of Transportation.

(Source: AP via Yahoo & New York Times)

The Senate will vote to extend the popular “cash-for-clunkers” program before going home on Friday, Majority Leader Harry Reid declared Tuesday in a strong signal the government won’t let the trade-in rebates die under the surging demand that has almost exhausted federal backing.

Reid’s GOP counterpart, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, predicted his party would not block a vote and “the matter will be completed.” Republicans were still demanding a chance to amend a House-passed version that would extend the program into September, but Democrats were confident the bill wouldn’t be changed.

“There obviously is a real pent-up demand in America,” the Transportation secretary, Ray LaHood, said. “People love to buy cars, and we’ve given them the incentive to do that. I think the last thing that any politician wants to do is cut off the opportunity for somebody who’s going to be able to get a rebate from the government to buy a new automobile.”

Visiting the White House for a lunch with the President, Harry Reid, the Senate majority leader, was also asked about the program.

“We’ll pass ‘cash for clunkers,’ ” he said. And Mitch McConnell, Republican of Kentucky, who is the minority leader, said there would be a vote, but he did not suggest an outcome.  Opposition to extending the program has been dissipating. One vocal GOP critic, South Carolina Sen. Jim DeMint, said Tuesday he would not try to block the legislation. And three lawmakers who wanted the program limited to the purchase of even more fuel-efficient vehicles said Monday they would back the plan.

Republicans have said it puts the government in the bad position of picking winners and losers.

“People want to know what’s going to be next. Cash for shoes? Cash for groceries?” said Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala.

The first $1 billion in funding is expected to lead to sales of 250,000 vehicles and the additional $2 billion would generate sales of perhaps a half-million more vehicles.  The program has encouraged about a quarter-million Americans to buy new cars at time when the economy is still in recession and badly needs a boost.

Buyers of new cars and trucks have swamped formerly deserted auto dealers to claim their rebates — up to $4,500 when they trade in older models that get significantly worse gas mileage. The older vehicles are then scrapped.

Because the House has already recessed for August, any change by the Senate would effectively interrupt the rebate program until Congress returns in September. Consumers who don’t get in on a deal this week would have to wait until then to take advantage of the rebates, assuming eventual passage.

Click here to read the entire article.