this post was submitted on 07 Nov 2023
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I run 100% biodiesel in a 1998 VW. IMO its a super-underrated solution, especially for folks who often need to drive long distances.
We shouldn't try to use it for 1:1 replacement of all current gasoline vehicles while changing nothing else, since it'd be a bad idea to devote that much farmland to growing fuel. What we should do, however, is transition the vast majority of driving to bicycles and rail, then use biodiesel for the niche cases left over.
Feel like a lot of these niche cases is logistics where the power is needed and no real viable alternative exists. Trucks, ships, and aeroplanes.
There are alternatives to diesel trucks, but from what I’ve heard they’re rubbish. Gas doesn’t perform that well, and is somewhat of a bitch to fuel, availability being an issue. They also don’t have as much range.
Electric isn’t even really a consideration since trucks just don’t have that much downtime, at least not the way it looks here. A standing truck is one that costs money, so the trucks run almost 24/7. Changing from spending 15-20 minutes fuelling once per day to 30-60 minutes fuelling 4-6 times per day just isn’t feasible.
We could try and force it, obviously. Have ships build sails again, add extra taxes on aeroplanes, and whatnot. When transport costs more, transporting will cost more, meaning anything that gets transported will cost more. The end result will be that everything will get that much more expensive.
On the contrary: freight trains are great! We just need to install pantograph wires on the tracks.
I was gonna mention that if you didn't. 'Course, nowadays it's more about computer-contolled kite sails than traditional one hung off masts.
Trucks. Trucks... Really? Freight train -> freight tram -> forklift.
~~Nuclear submarines~~
Capitalism.
This, already happens. You know that, right? I mean sure you might live in the US where people don't believe in safe schools, access to healthcare, or public transport, but in my country this is already a thing. Yet we still have some of the largest trucks in the entire world.
Why? Because while trains are great at transporting goods to larger hubs, and if a company, say Siemens or SSAB uses a lot of good they might construct their own hubs, smaller companies and individuals (like farmers) don't generally make the kind of money to buy their own forklifts, nevermind build their own train/tram tracks.
So the only option that remains on the table that's the right mix of environmentally friendly and economically viable is to cater to these individuals and companies using gigantic trucks. That is not like to change any time soon no matter how hard we wish that was the case.
Right. I'd be all for burning the system, executing those at the top, and starting over. While one can dream, that doesn't seem very feasible.
So how do we explain to everyone that the prices of food tripling is actually a good thing for them?