Ontario's Drive Clean
Encyclopedia
Ontario's Drive Clean is an automobile emissions control
program in Ontario
, Canada
. It applies only to vehicles in the program coverage areas, which are largely the lower half of Ontario, from Windsor in Southwestern Ontario to Ottawa in Eastern Ontario
. It is unlikely it will be expanded to cover all of Ontario. It is administered by Parson's Protect Air, through Ontario's Ministry of the Environment (Ontario)
(MOE), and the Ministry of Transportation
(MTO). The actual testing is carried out by privately owned and operated automotive shops, under contract to the MOE.
Originally, vehicles under 4,500 kg (cars, SUV, light trucks) and over three years old (and up to the 19th year) required an emission test
every two years before the vehicle's owner or lessor can renew its license plate. Starting with 2006, the test exemption was increased to five years, while the rolling exemption at 20 years ended, and all 1987 and older vehicles became exempt.
Heavy duty trucks and buses are also covered by Drive Clean program. They are tested annually once the vehicle is more than one year old, with no age limit to testing; A 1975 diesel powered truck or bus would still be tested so long as it was still registered. All vehicles on Ontario roads are further monitored by a 'smog patrol' team for the MOE and can be stopped at random and roadside tested. The Smog Patrol team drive around in vehicles that are equipped with mobile testing equipment to perform roadside tests. The Smog Patrol can also perform a visual inspection to ensure all emissions control equipment is in place and functioning as originally built (tampering or removing this equipment is an offence separate from Drive Clean but under the same Regulation). Some registrants circumvent an emissions test by registering their vehicles to addresses outside the Drive Clean testing areas. Circumventing an emissions test in this way is an offence and could result in a ticket or summons and could also result in licence plates being seized.
Smog Patrol Officers can also issue a Notice that requires a driver to take a vehicle for a Drive Clean test within a specific time period. Failure to comply with this Notice can also result in a serious fine, summons and/or plate seizure.
. In 2003, standards for light-duty vehicles were tightened to require 11.5% lower vehicle emissions than the most stringent American EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) recommended standards. On November 18, 2005, then Minister of the Environment (Ontario) Laurel Broten
announced several proposed changes to the Drive Clean program. Standards were tightened by a further 11.5%. Newer vehicles, which have a very high pass rate due to better emission control technology off the assembly line, were exempted from the program until they are five years old. At the other end of the age spectrum, the exemption for vehicles 20 years old and older was phased out. Vehicles built in 1988 and afterwards would have "fallen out" of the program after 19 years (for instance, a 1988 vehicle would no longer need testing after 2007). As a result of this change, such vehicles must continue to be tested every two years as long as they are on the road. Vehicles built in 1987 or before have now left the program permanently.
Critics accused the cash-strapped Dalton McGuinty
government, which came into power in 2003 allegedly facing a 5.6 billion dollar deficit, of expanding Drive Clean for budgetary reasons rather than environmental protection. Ontario had already invested in expensive testing machines, and due to their recent purchase (1998-99) these will not be paid off until about 2014. Concurrent emissions technology improvements rendered the test machines obsolete, leading many observers to assume that Drive Clean's days were numbered. The program was however reformed on November 18th, 2005. Revisions to the program were made, in particular the introduction of annual testing and the removal of the 20-year-exemption.
Drive Clean's emissions test results have been shown to be unreliable in surveys carried out by the media such as in-depth work done by the Hamilton Spectator
, The Fraser Institute, and consumer advocacy groups such as the Automobile Protection Association. In APA surveys, it was shown that the same car can have extremely variable results in test results (up to 800 percent in one survey), even at the same garage or on the same day with no work being carried out on the car. (APA). In 2004, the Ontario Auditor General reported on myriad cases of fraud within the Drive Clean program, such as test facilities (garages) that, for a fee, would test a clean car and report those results instead. Other test facilities would fail a well-tuned car to generate additional work. For these reasons and others, consumer reports suggest drivers try another garage if their car fails a Drive Clean test, before proceeding with expensive repairs.
Ontario's Drive Clean program provides no financial assistance to low-income drivers. This contrasts with otherwise similar mandatory emissions testing programs such as those in California, Texas and Arizona. Critics of Drive Clean, including the Province's own consulting firm, the Eastern Research Group, have strongly recommended that financial assistance should be provided . The repair cost limit is about to triple since the program's inception (from $200 to $450, and a proposed $600 RCL) while emissions standards have simultaneously become 23% more stringent leading to a greater percentage of vehicles that fail emissions tests. The social welfare effect is similar to that of a regressive tax
, one imposed on drivers who cannot afford newer cars. As of 2006, some unofficial current estimates put the total cost of the program to Ontario motorists close to 2 billion dollars. The most recent verifiable figure, $1.1 billion (as of 2004), consists of some $435 million in Drive Clean test fees, and about $690 million for repairs to vehicles that failed. Costs for preliminary repairs to vehicles in order to qualify for Drive Clean tests have never been included in these figures, such as repair or replacement of corroded exhaust system
components. Drive Clean test facilities are free to refuse to test any vehicle until such preliminary repairs are made.
The Ontario government also has a program to purchase and scrap old polluting cars called Car Heaven. This program is sponsored by General Motors
and Exxon-Mobil among others. It is structured in a way which will cost taxpayers little, and acts as a small incentive for people to scrap older cars. This has the effect of boosting prices for remaining used cars by reducing supply, making it somewhat more expensive for low-income persons to drive in Ontario. Currently, the average car donation to Car Heaven is 16 years old (model year 1990-1991). The typical vehicle donated to Car Heaven would otherwise have been on the road for three more years.
On October 29th, 2007, Laurel Broten
was replaced as Ontario's Minister of the Environment (Ontario) in a post-election cabinet shuffle. Broten had become the subject of controversy when her neighbours complained about her application to build a two storey multi-car garage with an elevator at her house for her and her husband's four automobiles: a hybrid Ford SUV, a Volvo SUV and two sports cars - a Mercedes and a Porsche. Dubbed the "garage Mahal", the incident led to her political judgment being questioned.
in Ontario
. 2005 was Toronto
's worst year on record for smog with a total of 48 smog alert days. The Ontario Medical Association
estimated in 2005 that total air pollution (from all sources) would cause some 5,800 deaths and 17,000 hospital admissions that year. It also estimated that the direct health care costs of air pollution in Ontario were about $507 million, and the total economic cost of air pollution to be about $7.8 billion.
In late 2004, Norm Sterling
, who served as the Environment Minister in Progressive Conservative premier Mike Harris
's cabinet, stated that Drive Clean had already had its greatest impact on air pollution and had served its purpose. Mr. Sterling is often referred to as the founder of Drive Clean. Drive Clean can only address a small fraction of the total automobile emissions problem, because all internal combustion vehicles burn fuels which ultimately pollute the air (including most so-called "alternative" fuels).
Greenpeace
co-founder Robert Hunter (journalist)
wrote in 1999 that Drive Clean "has turned out to be an agonizing bureaucratic nightmare that hits drivers with what is basically another tax and a huge hassle, while accomplishing -- in Environmental Commissioner Eva Ligeti's assessment -- 'minimal benefits.'"
Critics of Drive Clean, who included Hunter and many other environmentalists argue that a greater long-term impact on overall air quality would result from reinvesting the same provincial resources towards encouraging low-emitter technologies, some of which offer electric power as an alternative to 100% internal combustion propulsion. There has been call for the Ontario government to admit to Drive Clean's minimal impact, and to begin promoting low-emissions vehicles such as hybrid cars, plug-in hybrid electric vehicle
s, zero-emission vehicles such as the ill-fated General Motors EV1
, and personal transports like the Segway PT
. Unlike over 40 U.S. states, the Ontario government has banned low-speed electric vehicles citing "safety concerns". On March 23, 2006, Ontario's McGuinty government doubled their former $1,000 ceiling sales tax rebate on hybrid cars such as the Toyota Prius
up to a maximum of $2,000, but stopped short of making such vehicles PST-free.
Several politicians, including Norm Sterling
and Howard Hampton
have argued that diverting the same Provincial funds used for paying for Drive Clean towards improving existing public transit networks might have yielded a far greater overall environmental benefit. Proper funding may have also acted to reduce the well-documented disproportional fare increases seen in Toronto from the Toronto Transit Commission
(TTC) in recent years. The TTC has argued in the past that with riders covering more than 80 per cent of the cost of operating the TTC, it is by far the least-funded mass transit system in North America and one of the least-funded in the world.. Another lost opportunity to reduce smog was the quiet shut-down of the Hamilton Street Railway
's all-electric Trolleybus
routes in 1992.
On June 7, 2010, the Ministry of Environment posted a request for proposals on MERX Canadian Public Tenders service. The modernized Drive Clean program, which will be fully implemented by January 1, 2013, are intended to provide significant benefits by implementing OBD2 testing. The Ministry of the Environment will work with its stakeholders over the next two and half years to fully implement the new emissions tests for light-duty vehicles (passenger cars, vans, light trucks and sport utility vehicles under 4,500 kilograms). This new system is not without its critics , As vehicles must meet a certain criteria to pass. Problems such as a burnt out dash warning light will result in a vehicle failing the test and require expensive, unnecessary repairs that have zero impact on vehicle emissions. Some argue the testing price should be significantly reduced, as the physical test required in the current set up is replaced with a simple computer read out that can be completed instantly.
Automobile emissions control
Vehicle emissions control is the study and practice of reducing the motor vehicle emissions -- emissions produced by motor vehicles, especially internal combustion engines....
program in Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. It applies only to vehicles in the program coverage areas, which are largely the lower half of Ontario, from Windsor in Southwestern Ontario to Ottawa in Eastern Ontario
Eastern Ontario
Eastern Ontario is a subregion of Southern Ontario in the Canadian province of Ontario which lies in a wedge-shaped area between the Ottawa River and St. Lawrence River...
. It is unlikely it will be expanded to cover all of Ontario. It is administered by Parson's Protect Air, through Ontario's Ministry of the Environment (Ontario)
Ministry of the Environment (Ontario)
The Ministry of the Environment, established in 1972, is the portfolio in the Executive Council of Ontario responsible for addressing the environmental issues affecting the environmental protection of the Canadian province of Ontario and the World...
(MOE), and the Ministry of Transportation
Ministry of Transportation (Ontario)
The Ministry of Transportation of Ontario is the provincial ministry of the government of Ontario which is responsible for transport infrastructure and related law in Ontario. The ministry traces its roots back over a century to the 1890s, when the province began training Provincial Road Building...
(MTO). The actual testing is carried out by privately owned and operated automotive shops, under contract to the MOE.
Originally, vehicles under 4,500 kg (cars, SUV, light trucks) and over three years old (and up to the 19th year) required an emission test
Vehicle inspection
Vehicle inspection is a procedure mandated by national or subnational governments in many countries, in which a vehicle is inspected to ensure that it conforms to regulations governing safety, emissions, or both. Inspection can be required at various times, e.g., periodically or on transfer of...
every two years before the vehicle's owner or lessor can renew its license plate. Starting with 2006, the test exemption was increased to five years, while the rolling exemption at 20 years ended, and all 1987 and older vehicles became exempt.
Heavy duty trucks and buses are also covered by Drive Clean program. They are tested annually once the vehicle is more than one year old, with no age limit to testing; A 1975 diesel powered truck or bus would still be tested so long as it was still registered. All vehicles on Ontario roads are further monitored by a 'smog patrol' team for the MOE and can be stopped at random and roadside tested. The Smog Patrol team drive around in vehicles that are equipped with mobile testing equipment to perform roadside tests. The Smog Patrol can also perform a visual inspection to ensure all emissions control equipment is in place and functioning as originally built (tampering or removing this equipment is an offence separate from Drive Clean but under the same Regulation). Some registrants circumvent an emissions test by registering their vehicles to addresses outside the Drive Clean testing areas. Circumventing an emissions test in this way is an offence and could result in a ticket or summons and could also result in licence plates being seized.
Smog Patrol Officers can also issue a Notice that requires a driver to take a vehicle for a Drive Clean test within a specific time period. Failure to comply with this Notice can also result in a serious fine, summons and/or plate seizure.
Coverage area
The current coverage area for Drive Clean:- Greater Toronto/Hamilton since 1999
- Southwestern Ontario - Windsor to Niagara since 2001
- Eastern Ontario - Ottawa to Peterborough since 2002
- Heavy Duty vehicles - The entire province since 1999
Changing standards
The Drive Clean program has undergone several changes since its introduction in 1999 under then Ontario Premier Mike HarrisMike Harris
Michael Deane "Mike" Harris was the 22nd Premier of Ontario from June 26, 1995 to April 15, 2002. He is most noted for the "Common Sense Revolution", his Progressive Conservative government's program of deficit reduction in combination with lower taxes and cuts to government...
. In 2003, standards for light-duty vehicles were tightened to require 11.5% lower vehicle emissions than the most stringent American EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) recommended standards. On November 18, 2005, then Minister of the Environment (Ontario) Laurel Broten
Laurel Broten
Laurel C. Broten is a politician in Ontario, Canada. She is a member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, representing the riding of Etobicoke—Lakeshore for the Ontario Liberal Party. On October 19, 2011, she was appointed Ontario Minister of Education.-Background:Prior to entering politics,...
announced several proposed changes to the Drive Clean program. Standards were tightened by a further 11.5%. Newer vehicles, which have a very high pass rate due to better emission control technology off the assembly line, were exempted from the program until they are five years old. At the other end of the age spectrum, the exemption for vehicles 20 years old and older was phased out. Vehicles built in 1988 and afterwards would have "fallen out" of the program after 19 years (for instance, a 1988 vehicle would no longer need testing after 2007). As a result of this change, such vehicles must continue to be tested every two years as long as they are on the road. Vehicles built in 1987 or before have now left the program permanently.
Critics accused the cash-strapped Dalton McGuinty
Dalton McGuinty
Dalton James Patrick McGuinty, Jr., MPP is a Canadian lawyer, politician and, since October 23, 2003, the 24th and current Premier of the Canadian province of Ontario....
government, which came into power in 2003 allegedly facing a 5.6 billion dollar deficit, of expanding Drive Clean for budgetary reasons rather than environmental protection. Ontario had already invested in expensive testing machines, and due to their recent purchase (1998-99) these will not be paid off until about 2014. Concurrent emissions technology improvements rendered the test machines obsolete, leading many observers to assume that Drive Clean's days were numbered. The program was however reformed on November 18th, 2005. Revisions to the program were made, in particular the introduction of annual testing and the removal of the 20-year-exemption.
Test accuracy
Drive Clean's emissions test results have been shown to be unreliable in surveys carried out by the media such as in-depth work done by the Hamilton Spectator
The Hamilton Spectator
The Hamilton Spectator, founded in 1846, is a newspaper published every day but Sunday in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The paper has a daily circulation of 105,000 and a daily readership of nearly 260,000.-History:...
, The Fraser Institute, and consumer advocacy groups such as the Automobile Protection Association. In APA surveys, it was shown that the same car can have extremely variable results in test results (up to 800 percent in one survey), even at the same garage or on the same day with no work being carried out on the car. (APA). In 2004, the Ontario Auditor General reported on myriad cases of fraud within the Drive Clean program, such as test facilities (garages) that, for a fee, would test a clean car and report those results instead. Other test facilities would fail a well-tuned car to generate additional work. For these reasons and others, consumer reports suggest drivers try another garage if their car fails a Drive Clean test, before proceeding with expensive repairs.
Equity concerns
Ontario's Drive Clean program provides no financial assistance to low-income drivers. This contrasts with otherwise similar mandatory emissions testing programs such as those in California, Texas and Arizona. Critics of Drive Clean, including the Province's own consulting firm, the Eastern Research Group, have strongly recommended that financial assistance should be provided . The repair cost limit is about to triple since the program's inception (from $200 to $450, and a proposed $600 RCL) while emissions standards have simultaneously become 23% more stringent leading to a greater percentage of vehicles that fail emissions tests. The social welfare effect is similar to that of a regressive tax
Regressive tax
A regressive tax is a tax imposed in such a manner that the tax rate decreases as the amount subject to taxation increases. "Regressive" describes a distribution effect on income or expenditure, referring to the way the rate progresses from high to low, where the average tax rate exceeds the...
, one imposed on drivers who cannot afford newer cars. As of 2006, some unofficial current estimates put the total cost of the program to Ontario motorists close to 2 billion dollars. The most recent verifiable figure, $1.1 billion (as of 2004), consists of some $435 million in Drive Clean test fees, and about $690 million for repairs to vehicles that failed. Costs for preliminary repairs to vehicles in order to qualify for Drive Clean tests have never been included in these figures, such as repair or replacement of corroded exhaust system
Exhaust system
An exhaust system is usually tubing used to guide reaction exhaust gases away from a controlled combustion inside an engine or stove. The entire system conveys burnt gases from the engine and includes one or more exhaust pipes...
components. Drive Clean test facilities are free to refuse to test any vehicle until such preliminary repairs are made.
The Ontario government also has a program to purchase and scrap old polluting cars called Car Heaven. This program is sponsored by General Motors
General Motors
General Motors Company , commonly known as GM, formerly incorporated as General Motors Corporation, is an American multinational automotive corporation headquartered in Detroit, Michigan and the world's second-largest automaker in 2010...
and Exxon-Mobil among others. It is structured in a way which will cost taxpayers little, and acts as a small incentive for people to scrap older cars. This has the effect of boosting prices for remaining used cars by reducing supply, making it somewhat more expensive for low-income persons to drive in Ontario. Currently, the average car donation to Car Heaven is 16 years old (model year 1990-1991). The typical vehicle donated to Car Heaven would otherwise have been on the road for three more years.
On October 29th, 2007, Laurel Broten
Laurel Broten
Laurel C. Broten is a politician in Ontario, Canada. She is a member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, representing the riding of Etobicoke—Lakeshore for the Ontario Liberal Party. On October 19, 2011, she was appointed Ontario Minister of Education.-Background:Prior to entering politics,...
was replaced as Ontario's Minister of the Environment (Ontario) in a post-election cabinet shuffle. Broten had become the subject of controversy when her neighbours complained about her application to build a two storey multi-car garage with an elevator at her house for her and her husband's four automobiles: a hybrid Ford SUV, a Volvo SUV and two sports cars - a Mercedes and a Porsche. Dubbed the "garage Mahal", the incident led to her political judgment being questioned.
Impacts on air pollution
Drive Clean has had little real impact on air pollutionAir pollution
Air pollution is the introduction of chemicals, particulate matter, or biological materials that cause harm or discomfort to humans or other living organisms, or cause damage to the natural environment or built environment, into the atmosphere....
in Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
. 2005 was Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
's worst year on record for smog with a total of 48 smog alert days. The Ontario Medical Association
Ontario Medical Association
The Ontario Medical Association is a professional organization for physicians in Ontario, Canada founded in 1880. It represents and, to a certain degree, governs approximately 24,000 physicians in Ontario. The association's main office is located at 150 Bloor St. West in Toronto. The current...
estimated in 2005 that total air pollution (from all sources) would cause some 5,800 deaths and 17,000 hospital admissions that year. It also estimated that the direct health care costs of air pollution in Ontario were about $507 million, and the total economic cost of air pollution to be about $7.8 billion.
In late 2004, Norm Sterling
Norm Sterling
Norman William Sterling is a politician in Ontario, Canada. He is one of the longest-serving members of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, having been first elected in 1977....
, who served as the Environment Minister in Progressive Conservative premier Mike Harris
Mike Harris
Michael Deane "Mike" Harris was the 22nd Premier of Ontario from June 26, 1995 to April 15, 2002. He is most noted for the "Common Sense Revolution", his Progressive Conservative government's program of deficit reduction in combination with lower taxes and cuts to government...
's cabinet, stated that Drive Clean had already had its greatest impact on air pollution and had served its purpose. Mr. Sterling is often referred to as the founder of Drive Clean. Drive Clean can only address a small fraction of the total automobile emissions problem, because all internal combustion vehicles burn fuels which ultimately pollute the air (including most so-called "alternative" fuels).
Greenpeace
Greenpeace
Greenpeace is a non-governmental environmental organization with offices in over forty countries and with an international coordinating body in Amsterdam, The Netherlands...
co-founder Robert Hunter (journalist)
Robert Hunter (journalist)
Robert Lorne Hunter was a Canadian environmentalist, journalist, author and politician. A member of the Don't Make a Wave Committee in 1969 with Dorothy and Irving Stowe, Marie and Jim Bohlen, and Ben and Dorothy Metcalfe...
wrote in 1999 that Drive Clean "has turned out to be an agonizing bureaucratic nightmare that hits drivers with what is basically another tax and a huge hassle, while accomplishing -- in Environmental Commissioner Eva Ligeti's assessment -- 'minimal benefits.'"
Critics of Drive Clean, who included Hunter and many other environmentalists argue that a greater long-term impact on overall air quality would result from reinvesting the same provincial resources towards encouraging low-emitter technologies, some of which offer electric power as an alternative to 100% internal combustion propulsion. There has been call for the Ontario government to admit to Drive Clean's minimal impact, and to begin promoting low-emissions vehicles such as hybrid cars, plug-in hybrid electric vehicle
Plug-in hybrid electric vehicle
A plug-in hybrid electric vehicle , plug-in hybrid vehicle , or plug-in hybrid is a hybrid vehicle which utilizes rechargeable batteries, or another energy storage device, that can be restored to full charge by connecting a plug to an external electric power source...
s, zero-emission vehicles such as the ill-fated General Motors EV1
General Motors EV1
The General Motors EV1 was an electric car produced and leased by the General Motors Corporation from 1996 to 1999. It was the first mass-produced and purpose-designed electric vehicle of the modern era from a major automaker, and the first GM car designed to be an electric vehicle from the...
, and personal transports like the Segway PT
Segway PT
The Segway PT is a two-wheeled, self-balancing transportation machine invented by Dean Kamen. It is produced by Segway Inc. of New Hampshire, USA. The name "Segway" is a homophone of "segue" while "PT" denotes personal transporter....
. Unlike over 40 U.S. states, the Ontario government has banned low-speed electric vehicles citing "safety concerns". On March 23, 2006, Ontario's McGuinty government doubled their former $1,000 ceiling sales tax rebate on hybrid cars such as the Toyota Prius
Toyota Prius
The Toyota Prius is a full hybrid electric mid-size hatchback, formerly a compact sedan developed and manufactured by the Toyota Motor Corporation...
up to a maximum of $2,000, but stopped short of making such vehicles PST-free.
Several politicians, including Norm Sterling
Norm Sterling
Norman William Sterling is a politician in Ontario, Canada. He is one of the longest-serving members of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, having been first elected in 1977....
and Howard Hampton
Howard Hampton
Howard George Hampton, MPP is a Canadian lawyer and politician. He has served in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, Canada, since 1987 as the Member of Provincial Parliament from the northern riding of Kenora—Rainy River. A member of the Ontario New Democratic Party, he was also the party's...
have argued that diverting the same Provincial funds used for paying for Drive Clean towards improving existing public transit networks might have yielded a far greater overall environmental benefit. Proper funding may have also acted to reduce the well-documented disproportional fare increases seen in Toronto from the Toronto Transit Commission
Toronto Transit Commission
-Island Ferry:The ferry service to the Toronto Islands was operated by the TTC from 1927 until 1962, when it was transferred to the Metro Parks and Culture department. Since 1998, the ferry service is run by Toronto Parks and Recreation.-Gray Coach:...
(TTC) in recent years. The TTC has argued in the past that with riders covering more than 80 per cent of the cost of operating the TTC, it is by far the least-funded mass transit system in North America and one of the least-funded in the world.. Another lost opportunity to reduce smog was the quiet shut-down of the Hamilton Street Railway
Hamilton Street Railway
The Hamilton Street Railway Company is the Transit Division of the City of Hamilton, Public Works Department in Ontario, Canada. The name is a legacy of the days when the majority of public transit vehicles were streetcars; the present-day Hamilton Street Railway is in fact a bus operator...
's all-electric Trolleybus
Trolleybus
A trolleybus is an electric bus that draws its electricity from overhead wires using spring-loaded trolley poles. Two wires and poles are required to complete the electrical circuit...
routes in 1992.
The Future of Drive Clean
On June 7, 2010, the Ministry of Environment posted a request for proposals on MERX Canadian Public Tenders service. The modernized Drive Clean program, which will be fully implemented by January 1, 2013, are intended to provide significant benefits by implementing OBD2 testing. The Ministry of the Environment will work with its stakeholders over the next two and half years to fully implement the new emissions tests for light-duty vehicles (passenger cars, vans, light trucks and sport utility vehicles under 4,500 kilograms). This new system is not without its critics , As vehicles must meet a certain criteria to pass. Problems such as a burnt out dash warning light will result in a vehicle failing the test and require expensive, unnecessary repairs that have zero impact on vehicle emissions. Some argue the testing price should be significantly reduced, as the physical test required in the current set up is replaced with a simple computer read out that can be completed instantly.
External links
- Ontario Regulation 361/98 under the Environmental Protection Act
- Environmental Protection Act
- Set Fines under O. Reg 361/98
- Drive Clean Website
- Ontario Ministry of Environment
- SMOKESCREEN: Exposing Drive Clean
- Fraser Forum: False Failures
- Checking up on smog-check: A Critique of Traditional Inspection and Maintenance Programs
- Drive Clean or Drive Less
- An Issue of Taxation
- Overkill in Drive Clean Suspension Practices
- New provincial environment vows meet criticism: Private businesses may profit more from Drive Clean than environment
- The failure of Environmental Planning in Ontario
- Toronto Star: Plug in to new hybrid concepts
- Pluginamerica.com
- CalCars and Plug-In Hybrids in the News