Petrol and diesel (柴油）cars may still dominate our roads, but their days are numbered. A recent university study found that current electric cars could be used for 87 per cent of daily car journeys in the US. That figure could rise to 98 per cent by 2020.

One hurdle to the widespread adoption of electric cars has been ‘range anxiety’ — drivers’ concerns about running out of juice on a journey. While petrol stations are conveniently located across national road systems, the necessary network of electric charging stations is still being developed. That said, charging points are becoming increasingly common throughout the USA.

Attitudes towards electric vehicles have changed quite considerably over the last few years. Not that long ago, electric cars were met with distrust, and their large price tags（标签） drove customers away. Thanks to improvements in battery capacity, recharging times, performance and price, the current generation of electric cars are starting to persuade critics. Plug-in cars will soon give internal combustion（燃料） engine models a run for their money.

As well as advancements on the road, electric vehicles are taking to the seas and skies. Electric boats are among the oldest methods of electric travel, having enjoyed several decades of popularity from the late 19th to the early 20th century before petrol-powered outboard motors took over. Now, the global drive for renewable energy sources is bringing electric boats back. Steps towards electric air travel are also being made, with Airbus and NASA among the organizations developing and testing battery powered planes. The experiments could soon make commercial electric flight a reality.

Electric vehicles do not produce any emissions. Were the US to act on the study’s findings and replace 87 per cent of its cars with electric vehicles, it would reduce the national demand for petrol by 61 per cent. However, because of the production processes and the generation of electricity required to charge these vehicles, they cannot claim to be completely emission-free. That said, as many countries continue to increase their use of renewable energy sources, electric vehicles will become even cleaner.

Teenagers are the most dangerous drivers on the road, and car crashes are the leading cause of death among teens. But there’s one simple way to keep kids safe: Don’t give teens a car they consider their own.

Teenagers who reported that they were the main person driving a vehicle, rather than sharing it with other family members, were more than twice as likely to be involved in a crash. One in four drivers with primary access to a car had had an accident while driving in the past year, compared with 1 in 10 for shared access. That means 25 percent of the kids driving their “own” cars had at least one accident last year! The teens with their own car also were more likely to use a cell phone while driving (78 percent, compared with 55 percent) and to speed (70 percent vs 54 percent). These figures come from a survey of 2167 teenagers by researchers at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. It is said to be the first to look at whether having primary access to a car affects safety for teenage drivers.

What makes driving a family car safer? Maybe it’s as simple as knowing that it’s the family’s car. I’m sure the realization that it wasn’t “my” car made me more sorry-and more careful.

Many parents are excited when their teenager is finally driving, and many teens need to drive themselves to school or work. As a result, it’s easy for parents to think that a new driver needs a car. Indeed, the researchers found that 70 percent of the teenagers said that they had their “own” car. This is dangerous, and parents should consider delaying giving a child a car at least until the teenager has been driving for a year.

Children who have strict parents were 50 percent less likely to have had a crash in the past year, compared with parents whose style is permissive. The advice: Don’t be afraid to set rules for safe driving behavior, and take the keys if those rules aren’t followed. In fact, making your teenager say, “Mom, can I have the car keys?” may be one of the simplest and best ways to keep your child safe.

In recent times, with the coming of electric cars, the idea to fuel them with solar energy gained momentum (势头). Electric cars — even though they run on electricity and don’t use fossil fuels — are still NOT GREEN! People suffer from the misconception that not using fossil fuels means “green” which is kind of absurd, considering the electricity we use is produced by burning the very same fuels!

However, what if your car had solar panels that could charge it? Now that would indeed be a green machine! Though we would like to incorporate (使并入) this energy source into our car, the efficiency of the currently used solar panels is subject to the fulfillment of different criteria.

Firstly, solar panels take up a large amount of area. An average car has an area of 10-25 square feet on the roof, which can produce between 50-150W under ideal conditions. This is hardly enough power to make a light bulb function normally! Also, the moderate sunny temperature is ideal, as extremely high temperatures can reduce the efficiency of the solar panels. Cars must work in all weather conditions, so if a solar panel limits the car’s function, it will become practically useless. More importantly, the cost of the panels and development required to power the electronics using the sun’s energy outweighs the benefits that solar panels provide.

Most cars today that have solar roofs use solar energy to power only a few basic functions of the car. While there is still time before we will be able to drive cars fully powered by solar energy, there are some alternatives (可供选择的事物), such as solar power stations, which are being designed to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels for electricity.

Solar-powered vehicles are surely the future, but not the near future. As the cost of solar panels continues to fall and their efficiency increases, things will begin to look much “brighter” for this alternative and sustainable option!