A GEM of an Idea

Tagging on to a comment by joe_haldeman with a few bits of information on Neighborhood Electric Vehicles (NEV) and the GEM (Global Electric Motorcars) variant.

Neighborhood Electric Vehicles (NEV) - Wikipedia
Neighborhood Electric Vehicles - Advanced Vehicle Testing Activity - Idaho National Laboratory

There was a dealer for these vehicles in San Luis Obispo and every so often you'd see one of these glorified golf carts zipping along the streets of downtown SLO.  If I had a way to charge it, I might have got one myself.  Looks like Chrysler still sells their version of the critters.

Global Electric Motorcars - A Chrysler Company
GEM Electric Vehicles are Clean Air Leaders - Zer Customs

"GEM began selling vehicles in California a decade ago and nearly 14,000 vehicles are now in use in the state."  

Looks like there's a dealer in Lincoln.  There are several countries in Europe where these vehicles can be purchased.  The UK is not one of them it seems.

Global Electric Motorcars - Locate a Dealer
Neighborhood Electric Vehicles Driving Change Worldwide - Earthtoys - E Magazine

"By 2001, GEM had become the market leader in the new NEV classification, the first new car classification created by the Department of Transportation since 1929. That same year, the company was purchased by DaimlerChrysler.   The Fargo[, North Dakota] location allows the organization to take advantage of regional manufacturers to ensure quality: the hardened plastic bodies by Thermal Forms in White Bear Lake, Minn.; and the aluminum frames by Voyageur Supply and Fabrication in Brandon, Minn."

There are communities being designed around the regular use of such vehicles.  I understand that Sun City and related developments used regular golf carts for such activities.

Planned Community Goes Green with GEM Electric-Car Friendly Designation - The Auto Channel

"Four GEM-friendly communities exist today, and the company is working to extend the designation to dozens more throughout the country.  'We chose GEM because they are a great proven product that has done well in other communities,' says SMR spokesperson Sondra Guffey. 'And our residents just love them.'

To receive the GEM-friendly community designation, Lakewood Ranch will include electric vehicle only lanes, parking places and charging stations along with its other environmental applications such as non-potable water irrigation and endangered species habitats within the community."

And for the off-road crowd and some low CO2 ploverizing.

All-Electric GEM Vehicle gets Off-Road Makeover - Engadget

A GEM of an Idea

Tagging on to a comment by joe_haldeman with a few bits of information on Neighborhood Electric Vehicles (NEV) and the GEM (Global Electric Motorcars) variant.

Neighborhood Electric Vehicles (NEV) - Wikipedia
Neighborhood Electric Vehicles - Advanced Vehicle Testing Activity - Idaho National Laboratory

There was a dealer for these vehicles in San Luis Obispo and every so often you'd see one of these glorified golf carts zipping along the streets of downtown SLO.  If I had a way to charge it, I might have got one myself.  Looks like Chrysler still sells their version of the critters.

Global Electric Motorcars - A Chrysler Company
GEM Electric Vehicles are Clean Air Leaders - Zer Customs

"GEM began selling vehicles in California a decade ago and nearly 14,000 vehicles are now in use in the state."  

Looks like there's a dealer in Lincoln.  There are several countries in Europe where these vehicles can be purchased.  The UK is not one of them it seems.

Global Electric Motorcars - Locate a Dealer
Neighborhood Electric Vehicles Driving Change Worldwide - Earthtoys - E Magazine

"By 2001, GEM had become the market leader in the new NEV classification, the first new car classification created by the Department of Transportation since 1929. That same year, the company was purchased by DaimlerChrysler.   The Fargo[, North Dakota] location allows the organization to take advantage of regional manufacturers to ensure quality: the hardened plastic bodies by Thermal Forms in White Bear Lake, Minn.; and the aluminum frames by Voyageur Supply and Fabrication in Brandon, Minn."

There are communities being designed around the regular use of such vehicles.  I understand that Sun City and related developments used regular golf carts for such activities.

Planned Community Goes Green with GEM Electric-Car Friendly Designation - The Auto Channel

"Four GEM-friendly communities exist today, and the company is working to extend the designation to dozens more throughout the country.  'We chose GEM because they are a great proven product that has done well in other communities,' says SMR spokesperson Sondra Guffey. 'And our residents just love them.'

To receive the GEM-friendly community designation, Lakewood Ranch will include electric vehicle only lanes, parking places and charging stations along with its other environmental applications such as non-potable water irrigation and endangered species habitats within the community."

And for the off-road crowd and some low CO2 ploverizing.

All-Electric GEM Vehicle gets Off-Road Makeover - Engadget

Living Large in the Panhandle

I love traveling in Western Nebraska.   This fellow gets a lot of the feel of that right even if he misses on some of the rest of it.  That missed part is more speculation than research based, imo.  Too bad that part of the state is so conservative.  It certainly hasn't helped them in terms of sustainable economic development.

Ghost Roads of Nebraska - Washington Post - 2 Sep 2007

"Next morning at 6, I went for breakfast at a diner in town and several of the GOBs [Good Old Boys] were already there, looking none the worse for wear. I was not deterred by a large sign in the window, repeated on a wall inside, that said, 'LICENSED CONCEALED CARRY WELCOME HERE.'  Scrambled eggs, bacon, toast and coffee -- $3.50. Plus a generous tip for the possibly pistol-packin' waitress."

"I was pleasantly surprised to find that there is more to see in Nebraska than corn, cows, trains and abandoned buildings, and that the state is not flat. The huge Sandhills region is dominated by sand dunes, some rising hundreds of feet and covered with prairie grass. Lakes and wetlands, rich with wildlife but not people, lie between the dunes. Parts of the northwest portion of the state feature badlands as interesting as any in South Dakota.  Mountainous and forested land, rising here and there out of cornfields, utterly transformed the driving experience in minutes."

"Traffic on most of the roads I drove was so light and so local that drivers of oncoming vehicles often waved as they approached. I explored each town by driving slowly up and down Main Street, usually just two or three blocks long, and pedestrians would catch my eye, smile and wave.  Indeed, Nebraskans are the friendliest people I have ever met, and I have traveled a great deal. I found myself striking up conversations with total strangers, something I normally would not do."

"But do consider a drive through western Nebraska at least once in your life. See for yourself that it's possible to drive 200 miles through crystal-clean air without seeing billboards, roadside trash, shopping centers, stoplights or throngs of people. View old-time America through the eyes of John Steinbeck, Thomas Hart Benton and Buffalo Bill Cody.  It might be more than you expected."

Living Large in the Panhandle

I love traveling in Western Nebraska.   This fellow gets a lot of the feel of that right even if he misses on some of the rest of it.  That missed part is more speculation than research based, imo.  Too bad that part of the state is so conservative.  It certainly hasn't helped them in terms of sustainable economic development.

Ghost Roads of Nebraska - Washington Post - 2 Sep 2007

"Next morning at 6, I went for breakfast at a diner in town and several of the GOBs [Good Old Boys] were already there, looking none the worse for wear. I was not deterred by a large sign in the window, repeated on a wall inside, that said, 'LICENSED CONCEALED CARRY WELCOME HERE.'  Scrambled eggs, bacon, toast and coffee -- $3.50. Plus a generous tip for the possibly pistol-packin' waitress."

"I was pleasantly surprised to find that there is more to see in Nebraska than corn, cows, trains and abandoned buildings, and that the state is not flat. The huge Sandhills region is dominated by sand dunes, some rising hundreds of feet and covered with prairie grass. Lakes and wetlands, rich with wildlife but not people, lie between the dunes. Parts of the northwest portion of the state feature badlands as interesting as any in South Dakota.  Mountainous and forested land, rising here and there out of cornfields, utterly transformed the driving experience in minutes."

"Traffic on most of the roads I drove was so light and so local that drivers of oncoming vehicles often waved as they approached. I explored each town by driving slowly up and down Main Street, usually just two or three blocks long, and pedestrians would catch my eye, smile and wave.  Indeed, Nebraskans are the friendliest people I have ever met, and I have traveled a great deal. I found myself striking up conversations with total strangers, something I normally would not do."

"But do consider a drive through western Nebraska at least once in your life. See for yourself that it's possible to drive 200 miles through crystal-clean air without seeing billboards, roadside trash, shopping centers, stoplights or throngs of people. View old-time America through the eyes of John Steinbeck, Thomas Hart Benton and Buffalo Bill Cody.  It might be more than you expected."

Nuclear Energy - Our Misunderstood Friend

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Nuclear Energy - Our Misunderstood Friend

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The Democrats on Nukes

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The Democrats on Nukes

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