n fact, police in the United States have been using motorcycles since about 1912 when the nascent Harley-Davidson Co. started outfitting a few departments with them. The cycles turned out to be a godsend for traffic enforcement — they could chase speeders through traffic, and they could get to the scene of an accident far faster than a patrol car. This basic principle still holds true.
For nearly 100 years, Harley has dominated the U.S. market — the company said last year that its motorcycles “are presently in service with some 2,800 law enforcement agencies nationwide.”
Now, however, Honda, the world’s most successful maker of motorcycles, is testing the law enforcement waters here. Honda has the largest share of the U.S. civilian motorcycle market, with 26.9 percent of all new bikes sold in the United States, followed by Harley with 23.7 percent and then a handful of other manufacturers, according to figures for 2004 provided by the Motorcycle Industry Council.
Category: Transportation
Evacuating a 900+ Seat Airplane in 90 Seconds
It’s Sunday morning and as usual I’m wearing a numbered bib and doing agility tests in an aircraft hangar with 1,000 Germans I’ve never met before!
As you’ll have guessed, the one thing we had in common is that we all thought it sounded interesting to be a volunteer in the first – and probably only – evacuation trial of the A380.
So here we are on a miserable, wet airfield in one of the biggest hangars in Europe at Airbus’ Finkenwerder production facility next to the River Elbe.
I’m number 873, proud of it, and with a white bib numbered in black to prove it. We hand in everything in our possession which, though I don’t realise it then, is going to make the next five hours pass very slowly indeed.
A380 Super-Jumbo Jet: 7 Minute Video of the 12 Month Assembly Process
I doubt that flying with 550 to 900 people packed into a large plane will be all that enjoyable. The plane, is nevertheless, being built and will fly late this year or early next. The brief assembly video clip is rather interesting.
ACC Shorts Crash
So why do we keep track (from time to time) of ACC? We like ACC because it’s an example of good ole American homegrown ingenuity. ACC’s aircraft are Shorts 330s and Shorts 360s, which were once commuter passenger aircraft. Shorts was once an independent aircraft manufacturer based in Belfast, Northern Ireland, now no longer building aircraft but instead a parts-manufacturing division of Bombardier. The Shorts factory is at Belfast City Airport, which in recent years has taken an increasing share of traffic into that city (versus Belfast International).
Automakers Lining Up for Aid
Jeffrey H. Birnbaum and Sholnn Freeman:
Troubled U.S. automakers and their allies on Capitol Hill are seeking billions of dollars in aid from the federal government ranging from health coverage for their workers to extra tax write-offs for themselves.
They’re also asking for one rhetorical favor: Please don’t call the requests a bailout.
I don’t view it as a bailout,” Sen. Carl M. Levin (D-Mich.) said.
“We’re not looking for a bailout,” agreed William C. Ford Jr., chairman of Ford Motor Co.
Northern Opportunities
Fascinating article on plans to open polar shipping routes. Reminds me of 15th century opportunism:
With major companies and nations large and small adopting similar logic, the Arctic is undergoing nothing less than a great rush for virgin territory and natural resources worth hundreds of billions of dollars. Even before the polar ice began shrinking more each summer, countries were pushing into the frigid Barents Sea, lured by undersea oil and gas fields and emboldened by advances in technology. But now, as thinning ice stands to simplify construction of drilling rigs, exploration is likely to move even farther north.
Germans make Madison presentation on sustainable environmental policies & transportation
Environmental leaders from Freiburg, Germany will give a presentation at the MATC Downtown Education Center from 7:30 to 9:30 am on Friday, August 26. Dr. Dieter Woerner, Director of Freiburg’s Environmental Department, will give a talk on sustainable environmental policy and Andreas Hildebrandt of Verkehrs-AG will discuss the regional transportation system. Freiburg has developed sustainable environmental policies including extensive use of solar energy, bike trails and mass transit, recycling and urban planning. In 1992, Freiburg was awarded the title “German Environmental Capital” in a nationwide competition.
More information about Freiburg and other German sustainable development efforts visit: http://madisonfreiburg.org/sustainablecity.htm, http://www.solarregion.freiburg.de, http://www.wi-ei.org/germanymission.pdf and http://www.greentierwi.info/green.html
This event is sponsored by the Madison-Freiburg Sister City Committee, Sustain Dane, UWEX/SHWEC, and MATC.
Fossett Goes Further
Steve Fossett and Richard Branson announced that the Virgin GlobalFlyer won’t retire, but will attempt a 29,900 mile non-stop flight in February.
EAA Heats Up: B17 Buzzes Madison
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Click on the photos for a larger view.
The EAA’s AirVenture starts Monday. Looks like a fabulous show this year with Burt Rutan’s White Knight/SpaceShipOne paying a visit. A rare WWII vintage B17 buzzed Madison this morning. I snapped these photos in a hurry. The cell tower fly by is an interesting reflection of today’s world vis a vis 1940’s technology. More on the B17.
BioDiesel Co-ops
Producers of a diesel alternative made from old vegetable oil want to build a network of stations to sell the fuel to motorists. But many find it tough to convince local regulators to approve their efforts. By Mark Baard