Discount on North America’s Premier Fleet Technology Gathering
Connected Fleets USA (Nov 27-28, Atlanta) is just a week away. Get your pass today for $350 off - and benefit from unrivalled fleet technology content as well as premium networking across the entire spectrum of the fleet value chain.
The event offers one-to-one with confirmed attendees UPS, FedEx, Ford, GM, Daimler, Verizon, LeasePlan USA and Trimble, as well as getting access to our industry leading program with speakers including Penske, NMFTA, Volvo, Nationwide, Holman Enterprises and more.
What EV Sales Say About Transitioning Off Fossil Fuels – We Don’t Have Time to Waste
Americans bought more than 1 million cumulative electric vehicles bringing the U.S. auto market a long way from when the first mass-market EVs were introduced in 2010.
But for a country addicted to cars, the reality is that EVs still comprise under 2 percent of new domestic vehicle sales.
An accelerated transition to EVs - including battery, plug-in hybrid and hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles - is critical to help prevent climate disaster and requires a concerted effort from automakers, government and advocacy groups. Failure to do so will put the U.S. auto industry at a global disadvantage, slow the cleanup of local pollution, and help usher in potentially catastrophic climate impacts.
Read the article at The Hill.
Trump Tariffs Could Mean ‘Recession or Depression’ for US Auto Industry
Automakers have warned that their costs to build and subsequently sell new cars will rise because every car assembled in the U.S. contains a large percentage of foreign parts.
Toyota has said the costs of its cars could rise by thousands. General Motors has said it would be forced to downsize and cut jobs.
"I think it'll push us into a recession or a depression," Gary Shapiro, CEO of Consumer Technology Association said. "It'll put a lot of companies out of business. We're looking at a potentially difficult first quarter if that happens."
Read the article at Detroit Free Press.
Ford and Walmart Partner on Autonomous Vehicle Deliveries
Ford is continuing to grow its mobility business, partnering with Walmart to use autonomous vehicles to make deliveries.
Postmates, a delivery service company will work with Ford, initially using vehicles driven by people to deliver goods. Initial delivery runs will help develop the routing for autonomous vehicles.
“Before self-driving cars can go mainstream, we must get a better sense of how people want to interact with them,” Tom Ward, Walmart senior vice president for digital operations, said in a statement on Thursday.
Read the article at The Detroit Bureau.
Uber Aims at Winning Over Customers With Airlines-Style Rewards Program
Uber is offering a frequent flyer-style rewards program for riders.
The program, which launches in nine cities lets ride-hail customers earn perks like cheaper fares, better customer support, and priority pickups at airports.
Uber’s product team spent the better part of a year researching different rewards programs and surveying riders about the types of benefits they’d like to receive, said Nundu Janakiram, director of product of riders. “We wanted to develop benefits that hopefully resonated with users,” he said.
Read the article at The Verge.
