Vehizero: The Mexican Hybrid

As the debate on immigration gets hotter and hotter, and thousands of immigrant workers consider a massive strike and boycott on May 1st, people have gotten a lot more curious about the living conditions in the countries that immigrants leave behind when they come to the U.S. Of the ills that many people flee in Mexico, environmental pollution is not the least of them. Mexico City has some of the worst air quality in the world. There is a glimmer in the smog, however, that has come from the technological front. The young Mexican company Vehizero has been making hybrid gas/electric delivery trucks that have been selling so fast that orders are backlogged.

Vehizero is Mexico’s “first and only hybrid vehicle manufacturer,” according to World Changing’s guest contributor, Rob Katz. The 1-ton delivery truck gets 60% better fuel economy that its most efficient competitor, and is comparable in price. Design features of the truck also lower its chance of theft, which lowers road tax and insurance. Vehizero plans to add to its line a 3-ton truck, 100-passenger bus, and a small personal vehicle. Seems like it would make a lot of people happy is some of the truck migrated up north, no? :: Vehizero via WorldChanging