In my most recent OS post, I talked about my dream of converting a classic Studebaker into an electric vehicle. Just the fact that that is a remotely realistic possibility, and something that can be done at less than the price of even a low-end new car, is something I find very exciting indeed.

I've been doing a fair bit of research on the subject of gas-to-electric conversion and one of the things I love about it is that, for people who can afford to do it (or have it done), and for whom having an electric car makes sense, conversion means a consumer who wants to go electric now doesn't necessarily have to wait for the big automakers to come out with production electrics, or until they can afford a car from one of the smaller companies like Phoenix or Fisker. Most conversions can be done for $10-15,000 if you have a mechanic or a company like the Austin-based Revolt Custom Electric do it for you;  if you are mechanically adept you can buy kits for a DIY conversion that run for about $3-5,000, not including the cost of the "donor" car and the batteries.

I think what is most exciting to me is that we are finally starting to realize, government and industry both, that the solution to making our transportation greener doesn't have to be one size fits all. For someone like me, who lives in a city compact enough that most of my driving is within a 30-50 mile range, an electric car makes sense. For someone living in L.A., perhaps, they would need a production electric with a greater range, or perhaps one of the plug-in hybrids that we're going to start seeing within a year or two.

And President Obama's proposals to increase funding for projects like high-speed rail and funding research and development of battery technology is a huge step in the right direction. The Republicans have repeatedly tried to make political hay out of stimulus funding for a mag-lev rail line between Los Angeles and Las Vegas. It wasn't in the bill, but I've yet to see a good argument for considering such a thing ridiculous. Given how many millions make the four-hour drive between LA and Las Vegas every year, why would a high-speed link be so bad? It would be a great investment. As would finally building high speed lines between Texas's major cities. They've been talking about it for years; it's past time to make it a reality. I would much rather take a comfortable train into Dallas or San Antonio than drive on the increasingly congested I-35. And there's not even an interstate linking Austin to Houston, so a good rail link would be a vast improvement.

The solutions are there. We just have to grasp and run with them.