JoeMario: Los Angeles mid 1970s. I did not have a repetitive commute but the first couple of times spending an hour to travel 15 miles on the freeway which was pretty much an 8 lane parking lot I tried the boulevards. Even if you hit every red light (which never happened) you could cut the time in half! Our fellow humans can be so stupid and sheep like! In my last 6 years+ of being retired I can usually pick my traffic battles and drive at non peak traffic times. I have been back in Oregon since 1976 so I donât have to deal with anything like LA traffic but I have alternate nearly deserted routes which may be a bit longer but faster by avoiding congested traffic plus they involve entertaining âtwistiesâ!
Several years ago someone in California who had apparently been oblivious to the fact that diesel truck drivers virtually never shut off their engines was made aware of the situation and took it upon him/herself to campaign against the policy to âsave the earth.â Once the campaign got traction and reached the crest it went over the top and like a snowball picking up an ever growing accumulation of âearth saversâ who are mostly clueless activists looking for a good cause until the mass became an unstoppable force.
Diesel trucks now offer internal combustion engines tucked under the cabs that power generators and HVAC systems to allow shutting down the engines anytime the truck is still for any length of time plus the manufacturers go to great lengths congratulating the powers that be for their astute insight and genius in recognizing and correcting a problem. And if a little bit is good a lot is excellent, dontchaknow. Maybe truckers will be required to shut off their engines during long downhill coasts. That might increase fuel mileage 5%⊠or .0005%.
Yeah, but most of the new trucks are either âcertified clean idle,â or come with an aux power unit, because of that. Idling a big diesel overnight to keep the cab livable has to waste some fuel; if you have an APU, it just makes sense to use it. It stinks that they donât âgrandfatherâ the older designs, though.
Yes. The misinformed idiot âgreenie weeniesâ would be horrified by someone stuck in a blizzard idling their engine to prevent dying of hypothermia. At least my state has prohibited coasting downhill for as long as I can remember. Modern vehicles exhaust nearly as clean air as they intake.
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It is like it is a waste of water and energy to rinse your dishes before you put them in your dishwasher. We run the dishwasher once a week maybe, all that stuck on food and possible gross growth not to mention potential food poisoning on leftovers stuck on the plate makes me say bogus. Sure the dishwasher has a built in disposal, but donât confuse me with the facts as my mind is made up!