A 60-mile traffic jam near the Chinese capital could last until mid-September, officials say.
Traffic has been snarled along the outskirts of Beijing and is stretching toward the border of Inner Mongolia ever since roadwork on the Beijing-Tibet Highway started Aug. 13. The following week, parts of a major road circling Beijing were closed, further tightening overburdened roadways.
As the jam on the highway, also known as National Highway 110, passed the 10-day mark Tuesday, local authorities dispatched hundreds of police to keep order and to reroute cars and trucks carrying essential supplies, such as food or flammables, around the main bottleneck. There, vehicles were inching along little more than a third of a mile a day. Zhang Minghai, director of Zhangjiakou city’s Traffic Management Bureau general office, said in a telephone interview he didn’t expect the situation to return to normal until around Sept. 17 when road construction is scheduled to be finished and traffic lanes will open up.
Villagers along Highway 110 took advantage of the jam, selling drivers packets of instant noodles from roadside stands and, when traffic was at a standstill, moving between trucks and cars to hawk their wares.
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Traffic jam in China could last weeks
Government Motors enviro-car costs $41,000
The long-anticipated Chevrolet Volt, General Motors’ electric car, will cost $41,000, the company announced Tuesday, leaving consumers to decide whether its environmental appeal is worth a price far above that of similarly sized conventional autos.
Electric-car technology has been around for years, but the high cost to make the vehicles has prevented automakers from producing them for the mass market. The price announcements for the Volt and its electric rival, the Nissan Leaf, have been highly anticipated as a result. Nissan, the only other major manufacturer expected to bring such a vehicle to market this year, said the Leaf will cost $32,780.
GM and Nissan are relying on a $7,500 federal tax credit for buyers of electric vehicles to offset some of the added cost, and they’re hoping that the allure of their novel power source will make up the rest.
Ford reports $2.6 billion profit
Ford Motor Co continued to roll forward during the second quarter of 2010, reporting a profit of $2.6 billion, or 61 cents per share, as each of its major business operations around the world posted larger profits.
The second quarter financial report reflected the best results by Ford since the first quarter of 2004, Ford chief executive officer Alan Mulally said, adding the company should be able to go from a net debt to a net cash position by year-end.
“We delivered a very strong second quarter and first half of 2010 and are ahead of where we thought we would be despite the still-challenging business conditions,” Mulally said, adding Ford expects to continue to post strong results through the balance of the year and through 2011.
Car bomb thwarted in Times Square
NY Daily News, “3 cops, street vendor stop Times Square car bomb from detonating; Gas, clock found inside car”
by Alison Gendar, Rocco Parascandola, Kevin Deutsch, and Samuel Goldsmith
Three heroic cops and a quick-thinking street vendor stopped a madman from detonating a car bomb in the heart of Times Square Saturday night, law enforcement officials told the Daily News.
The T-shirt vendor – a Vietnam vet – told Officer Wayne Rhatigan there was smoke coming from a Nissan SUV on the southwest corner of 45th St. and Broadway about 7 p.m., sources said.
Rhatigan approached the car, saw the smoke, and sprang into action.
He grabbed two rookie female cops patrolling the area. Together, they pushed hundreds of people away from the scene as they called for backup, he said.
The Fire Department and bomb squad rushed to the scene.
What they found was stunning: a running SUV packed with three propane tanks, two red 5-gallon plastic jugs of gasoline, a clock, electrical components and a canister of gunpowder, police sources said.
NY Daily News article continues here.
Obama Motors posts $4.3 billion loss for 2009
Breitbart (AFP), “GM posts $4.3 billion loss for 2009”
General Motors posted a post-bankruptcy 2009 net loss of 4.3 billion dollars Wednesday but said it hoped to achieve profitability in 2010.
The new GM, which emerged from bankruptcy protection on July 10, achieved global revenues of 57.5 billion dollars and ended the year with net cash of one billion dollars.
“As the results for 2009 show, there is still significant work to be done,” Chris Liddell, GM vice chairman and chief financial officer said in a statement.
Breitbart (AFP) article continues here.
Obama Gov’t to fine Toyota a record $16 million
Yahoo! Finance (AP), “Toyota faces $16M fine, accused of hiding defect”
by Ken Thomas
The government accused Toyota of hiding a “dangerous defect” and proposed a record $16.4 million fine on Monday for failing to quickly alert regulators to safety problems in gas pedals on popular models such as the Camry and Corolla.
The proposed fine, announced Monday by Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, is the most the government could levy for the sticking gas pedals that have led Toyota to recall millions of vehicles. There could be further penalties under continuing federal investigations. The Japanese automaker faces private lawsuits seeking many millions more.
Toyota Motor Corp. has recalled more than 6 million vehicles in the U.S., and more than 8 million worldwide, because of acceleration problems in multiple models and braking issues in the Prius hybrid.
Yahoo! Finance (AP) article continues here.
Feds enlist NASA to probe Toyota…
Business First, “Feds enlist NASA in Toyota probe”
U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said Tuesday that NASA engineers have joined investigators from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to examine the “sudden acceleration” problems reported in some Toyota models.
The National Academy of Sciences will conduct a separate investigation of acceleration and electronic vehicle controls across the entire automotive industry, the department said in a news release.
“We are determined to get to the bottom of unintended acceleration,” LaHood said in a news release. “For the safety of the American driving public, we must do everything possible to understand what is happening.”
Business First article continues here.
Man at wheel of ‘out-of-control’ Prius has troubled financial past
Fox News, “Man at Wheel of ‘Out-of-Control’ Prius Has Troubled Financial Past”
The man who became the face of the Toyota gas pedal scandal this week has a troubled financial past that is leading some to question whether he was wholly truthful in his story.
On Monday, James Sikes called 911 to report that he was behind the wheel of an out-of-control Toyota Prius going 94 mph on a freeway near San Diego. Twenty-three minutes later, a California Highway Patrol officer helped guide him to a stop, a rescue that was captured on videotape.
Since then, it’s been learned that:
— Sikes filed for bankruptcy in San Diego in 2008. According to documents, he was more than $700,000 in debt and roughly five months behind in payments on his Prius;
— In 2001, Sikes filed a police report with the Merced County Sheriff’s Department for $58,000 in stolen property, including jewelry, a digital video camera and equipment and $24,000 in cash;
— Sikes has hired a law firm, though it has indicated he has no plans to sue Toyota;
— Sikes won $55,000 on television’s “The Big Spin” in 2006, Fox40.com reports, and the real estate agent has boasted of celebrity clients such as Constance Ramos of “Extreme Home Makeover.”
Fox News article continues here.
Toyota: Democrats ‘not industry friendly’
Politico, “Toyota: Democrats ‘not industry friendly’”
by Jake Sherman
Internal Toyota documents derided the Obama administration and Democratic Congress as “activist” and “not industry friendly,” a revelation that comes days before the giant automaker’s top executives testify on Capitol Hill amid a giant recall.
According to a presentation obtained under subpoena by the House Oversight and Government Relations committee, Toyota referred to the “changing political environment” as one of its main challenges and anticipated a “more challenging regulatory” environment under the Obama administration’s purview.
This document, in addition to piles of other records, will be front and center this week as the Japanese automaker girds to face lawmakers hungry for answers about a recall that has the company teetering.
Politico article continues here.
Senator Brown’s pickup arrives on Capitol Hill
Fox News, “Senator Brown’s Pickup Arrives on Capitol Hill”
by John Wallace and Anite Siegfriedt
The newest member of the Senate, Scott Brown (R-MA) just finished casting his first votes of his Senatorial career today but what might be equally important to his supporters is that his beloved green GMC truck, one of the most memorable symbols of the campaign, has arrived at the Capitol. Brown’s staff said he and his wife drove it down from Massachusetts.
Brown used the truck to crisscross Massachusetts during his historic campaign, and it played a prominent role in his campaign ads as well as his opponent’s.
After his upset victory over Democrat Martha Coakley, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell told Brown that he could park it anywhere he’d like on Capitol Hill. Looks like Brown has taken McConnell up on the offer.
The snow-covered pickup was parked just outside of Brown’s office building, across from the Capitol, where it will likely make a regular appearance. Senators are permitted to park close to their offices.
Fox News article continues here.
China ends U.S.’s reign as largest auto market
Bloomberg, “China Ends U.S.’s Reign as Largest Auto Market”
China supplanted the U.S. as the world’s largest auto market after its 2009 vehicle sales jumped 46 percent, ending more than a century of American dominance that started with the Model T Ford.
The nation’s sales of passenger cars, buses and trucks rose to 13.6 million, the fastest pace in at least 10 years, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers. In the U.S., sales slumped 21 percent to 10.4 million, the fewest since 1982, according to Autodata Corp.
China’s vehicle sales have surged since 1999 as economic growth averaging more than 9 percent a year has helped automakers including General Motors Co. and Volkswagen AG compensate for slumping demand in the U.S. and Europe. The market will likely remain the world’s largest, even as sales slow this year on a reduction in tax cuts, according to Booz & Co.
Bloomberg article continues here.