Green Options

At this point, most of us have heard of Better Place and their battery swap station idea, but they aren’t the only ones who’ve though of such a thing. NuTech, a company I recently discovered at the Alt Car Expo in Santa Monica, CA, has developed their own take on the concept of drive-thru battery swap stations… only theirs is portable.

Zero Motorcycles has just announced that they are the first electric motorcycle company to meet all US and Canadian safety standards as well as pass EPA certification allowing their bikes to qualify for major federal tax credits of 10% of the purchase price as well as a state sales tax credit.

A lot of electric vehicles suffer from performance anxiety. That is to say, they are green and clean, but not very mean, the Tesla Roadster being a notable exception. Sometimes though, you just want to go fast. I had my first hybrid experience the other day, and while the Honda Insight I drove wasn’t the worst ride I’ve ever had, I could see myself getting very bored, very quickly with such an underpowered car (in my opinion, of course).

But I doubt I would get bored with the Zero DS, the latest electric motorcycle to be unveiled by Zero Motorcycles. Built from the ground up and utilizing the latest techniques and technology, this durable dirtbike promises off-road performance with streetwise manners. And it had better for the asking price $9,950.