I think it is something that definitely needs more R&D, the fuel that we use now is on the downhill slope, I want me grandkids that don't yet exist to be able to drive hotrods and cars when they come of age.

I think the whole tax structure on fuel is twisted now. I live in the central california valley. our major freeways, 99 and I-5 see heavy traffic from semi trucks (I watched a special that said 40% of the pollution here comes from intrastate trucking going through the corridor). I know that much more road wear and tear comes from heavy vehicles driving on it than from passenger cars. In fact I would wager that aside from weather damage (water seepage, expansion etc.) a road would last decades without damage if only passenger vehicles traversed it. Look at the difference in condition between the slow lanes and the fast lanes, the fast lane sees more vehicles (on a 2 lane like 99) but the slow lane has the heavy ones.

I know I know, truck drivers swear that their trucks don't cause undue wear on the roads. BS, increased axle weight, type of suspension on the truck transferring the load to the road bed etc. etc. all affect road wear.

In short, I think that passenger vehicle drivers should pay less in taxes for road maintenance than commercial vehicle. Furthermore, anybody using bio-fuel should receive discounts and I have no problem with them being exempt (until the number of people using them reaches a real significant level, at which point maybe there needs to be a penalty on those not using bio-fuel), not just because they are conserving fossil fuel, but because they are not producing the same pollutants and letting them into the atmosphere.

Before any of you think I am some greenie, I'm not, I just don't believe in abusing the environment and polluting it unnecessarily. I live in Fresno, worst air in the nation, they say children by the age of 2 have been exposed to more air pollutants than they should be by their teens. my 16 month old daughter was diagnosed as having asthma a couple of weeks ago. It's a sad thing for a parent when your child is sick and worse when you know it is environmental.

sorry for getting a bit off topic and long winded.

Red