No? Not happy with our gas prices? Well, honestly, neither am I, but the more I thought about it, the more I became convinced that perhaps our sky-high gas prices and dependence on foreign oil have turned out to be a blessing in disguise.

The auto industry has the technology to build fuel efficient cars, has had much of this technology for decades, but has not developed this technology into profitable mass marketed vehicles. Why? Because the consumer has not demanded it. Come what may, the automotive industry is and always will be driven by the consumer.

As long as the consumer continues to buy what the industry offers, they will continue to build what they are building. Of course, due to emission controls and higher mileage standards over the years, we now have fewer harmful emissions and better mileage than twenty years ago. While this has been a great start, we cannot allow it to become a stopping point.

Let’s take a realistic look at where we are today and how we as consumers can help ensure a more profitable and healthier future for ourselves, our children and generations to come. We now have hybrid cars that provide much better fuel efficiency and less pollution, and fuel cell vehicles that use no gasoline and produce no harmful emissions.

Both hybrid and fuel cell vehicles are currently used in public transportation systems in many select US cities, as well as in Canada and Germany, including urban transit buses, taxis, and delivery vehicles such as UPS.

military vehicles – In April, the US Army received the modified fuel cell Chevrolet Silverado that is capable of generating 188 kW and 317 pound-feet of torque, or roughly the torque generated by the 5.3-liter V-8 engine of GM. This is the first time the vehicle has been driven in California. It will be delivered to Marines at Camp Pendleton, California, later this year for demonstration and evaluation.

“This vehicle has spent the past several months performing civilian-type duties at Ft. Belvoir, Virginia, where Army Soldiers have been evaluating its performance and learning firsthand about hydrogen and fuel cells,” said Dr. McClelland. , director of Tank-Automotive. Research, Development and Engineering Center (TARDEC) of the United States Army.

The world’s first individual fuel cell vehicle customer

California Hydrogen Highway – The Spallino family, who live in the Los Angeles area, will be one of the first people to start using the first of California’s Hydrogen Highway filling stations, a state infrastructure being built to provide access to the station of hydrogen service to individuals. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger announced the state’s commitment to a Hydrogen Highway in April of this year, creating a public-private partnership to build California’s Hydrogen Highway by 2010.

In the Chinese project, Hyundai Tucson and Kia Sportage SUVs, powered by fuel cells manufactured by UTC Fuel Cells, will operate throughout Southern California and refuel at ChevronTexaco’s hydrogen station. Of particular importance is the on-site production of hydrogen from natural gas. Natural gas, with an existing distribution infrastructure, is critical to the eventual transition to the hydrogen economy. This station will also have the future capacity to convert other renewable fuel sources, such as ethanol, into hydrogen to refuel fuel cell vehicles.

Hydrogen filling station – The EPA has commissioned a hydrogen fueling station at its National Fuel and Vehicle Emissions Laboratory in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The station provides compressed hydrogen gas for hydrogen vehicles in southeastern Michigan.

The lab in Ann Arbor, Michigan, is the first federal facility to install such a vehicle service station. This state-of-the-art station serves as a real example to others of the safe installation and operation of a hydrogen fueling station. In addition to supporting the Fuel Cell Delivery Vehicle Test Program, this station will also be used for fueling future hydrogen vehicles deployed in Michigan.

So perhaps our future looks brighter with less reliance on foreign oil and a head start on cleaner air and a healthier environment for all. But it is up to us, each of us consumers, and what choices we make that will determine our future.