I Want To Ride My Bicycle

I Want To Ride My Bicycle

Dear Dougie,

I do a lot of driving. But when I’m in Toronto, I want to ride my bicycle. And I want to do that in Toronto’s bike lanes. They are fantastic, safe, and make getting around the city a dream. In fact, I want more bike lanes!

I know you don’t ride a bike very often. Maybe your 2017 blind date with Jagmeet Singh was the last time you did. thestar.com

Since then, you’ve been trying to argue that traffic was terrible everywhere. If you’re driving a car, that’s true. We have gridlock for days in Toronto. But that’s a different problem. And one that won’t be solved by your buck-a-beer-type legislation (that made beer more expensive).

Those of us who live in downtown Toronto know that the only way to get around town quickly is by bicycle. 29secrets.com

I don’t know why you don’t like data. Cities that expand bike lane networks have been proven to improve local economies and reduce congestion, not aggravate it.

The specific stretch of bike lanes you want to remove on Bloor Street was carefully assessed over several years and determined to provide either neutral or positive economic benefits.

Your bullshit war on cyclists has garnered international press. The Guardian reported that your plan is likely to make congestion worse. theguardian.com

Dougie, you have a history of being “very, very sorry” for things. I just hope you are also “very, very sorry” for this irrational notion that removing bike lanes in any way benefits Toronto. nationalpost.com

Maybe the concept of induced demand is too complicated for you to understand.

So let me put this in words you’re likely to appreciate — stay in your own f#$king lane and stay out of mine.

-Growdy

China’s Automotive Expansion

The Xiaomi SU7 Ultra, a four-door 1,526bhp sedan, has lapped Nürburgring in 6m 46.874s, making it not just the fastest four-door car to have done so but the fastest electric car ever. topgear.com

The Maextro S800 electric sedan from Huawei and JAC looks amazing but is about 5.5 meters long. carnewschina.com

Volvo is building a new hybrid for the Chinese market. carnewschina.com

Marques Brownlee reviews the Li Auto Mega MPV and declares it the “best EV you can’t buy.” youtube.com

Europe is considering trading tariffs for technology. ft.com (paid subscription required)

As of October, nearly 53% of all vehicle sales in China are “plug-ins.” cleantechnica.com

Must Know Musk News

Brazil’s first lady drops an f-bomb while trash-talking Elon Musk at a G20 event (maybe she wants to co-write my newsletter). cnn.com

SpaceX wants to make Starlink faster. pcmag.com

The sonic boom created by SpaceX’s Starship might cause structural damage to buildings. nytimes.com (paid subscription required)

Tesla is desperate to sell more Model Ys before the end of the year. electrek.co

Tesla converts a Shell gas station into a supercharger station. electrek.co

Tesla’s North American Charging Standard is now actually on its way to becoming the North American Charging Standard. techcrunch.com

Tesla has a phantom braking problem. reuters.com

In a Wall Street Journal op-ed, Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy outlined their plan to find efficiency and reduce government spending. wsj.com (paid subscription required)

Rise Of The Machines

Four Grower builds robots designed to harvest plants in greenhouses autonomously. techcrunch.com

Moflin is a weird “Tribble-like” AI robot pet. theguardian.com

Canadian high school students made a robotic hockey goalie, eh. ctvnews.ca

Kim Kardashian did a weird, sexy photoshoot with a Tesla Optimus robot. instagram.com

Energy

The Mockingbird Solar Center, Ørsted’s largest solar project, is now online in Texas. electrek.co

Minnesota’s largest coal plant goes solar. electrek.co

The US power grid added the battery equivalent of 20 nuclear reactors in the past four years. theguardian.com

Alberta wants more pipelines. And that’s probably a good thing for Canada. bnnbloomberg.ca

Ontario’s Darlington nuclear plant refurbishment is ahead of schedule. cbc.ca

Off-shore oil drilling is back. ft.com (paid subscription required)

CATL’s new sodium battery is more fire-resistant and operates at low temperatures while maintaining energy density. carnewschina.com

Prolonged drought and extreme weather have forced Canada to import electricity. ft.com (paid subscription required)

Sweden’s Northvolt filed for Chapter 11 this week after racking up $5.8 billion in debt. theverge.com, techcrunch.com

But Wait, There’s More

Jaguar rebrands as Jaguar (wait, what?) and adopts an "Exuberant Modernism" design aesthetic. theverge.com, autoblog.com

Stellantis says, “hold my beer,” in reference to figuring out how to operate under a Trump presidency. reuters.com

Jeep Wagoneer S EV will arrive at US dealerships any day now. electrek.co

GM wants to get into F1. autonews.com

Hyundai has an integrated charging control unit problem. electrek.co

Ford might give the Maverick a mid-gate. theautopian.com

Honda plans to launch electric vehicles with their new all-solid-state battery in the “second half of the 2020s.” electrek.co

Kia announces high-performance EV9 GT that includes support for NACS charging. theverge.com

Trump’s tariff plan will likely increase costs for automakers, suppliers and consumers while forcing drastic changes to the global automotive supply chain. Good times. autonews.com

ICYMI

Husqvarna has an awesome new electric dirt bike that is also street-legal. electrek.co

Retailers now benefit from offering EV charging. nytimes.com (paid subscription required)

DOJ might want Google to sell off Chrome. theverge.com

Japanese scientists made a satellite out of wood. cbc.ca

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