The Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) recently announced that Plug-In 2011 – an international conference of expert insights on technical advances, market research and policy initiatives shaping the future of plug-in hybrid and electric transportation – will be held in the Research Triangle area of North Carolina, July 18-21, 2011.

The Raleigh Convention Center will be the first venue for the Plug-In Conference that will be held outside of California. The shift in location was envisioned as a way to offer wider access to potential attendees. Next year’s conference will be co-organized by EPRI, Progress Energy and Duke Energy. 

“We decided to offer a bit of geographical balance to our conference schedule as a way of exposing more people to the significant progress made toward integrating plug-in hybrid and other electric vehicles into the transportation system,” said Mark Duvall, director of Electric Transportation at EPRI. “The Research Triangle area is an appropriate location that is well-known as an incubator of entrepreneurship, innovation and thought-leadership.”

The Plug-In Conference was launched in San Jose in 2008, moved to Long Beach (Southern California) in 2009 and returned to San Jose this year. It attracts automotive manufacturers, component suppliers, electric utilities, government agencies, the environmental community and academia to exchange ideas and gather information needed to make key decisions related to plug-in hybrid and electric transportation.

Plug-In 2010 includes high-level plenary sessions and 21 breakout sessions and mini-panels focused on driving, connecting and launching technologies required to fully commercialize and integrate electric drive into the marketplace.

The exposition floor, which includes vehicles, electric infrastructure and batteries, and related components, features more than 40 exhibitors. July 27 is Public Night, an open forum where visitors can see the exposition floor and participate in a panel discussion. For more information about Plug-In 2010, organized by EPRI and the Silicon Valley Leadership Group, visit www.plugin2010.com.

(and don’t go squatting plugin2011.com just because this group hasn’t gotten the wherewithal to buy it yet!)

The Raleigh City Council’s Passenger Rail Task Force will present their report and recommendations at today’s City Council meeting. The group analyzed three proposed plans for High(er) Speed Rail and how it will impact residents and businesses along corridors. The three plans are online, and viewing them before today’s 1:00 meeting (televised on RTN) will ease the viewer’s understanding of the subject matter.

The three maps for downtown are the most interesting (map 1, map 2, map 3 – all pdf). The show alternative routes and possibilities for new crossing arrangements. One proposal puts the railway between Capital Blvd and Whitaker Mill Road. The other two put the railway on the Mordecai side of Capital Blvd.

The Task Force presentation falls on page 19 of the City Council’s 24-page agenda. So, while the agenda is not followed at a constant pace, and is sometime ignored, we can at least get a sense of when the presentation will be.

The City of Raleigh determined that replacing a few intersections with roundabouts would increase safety, save money, and preserve the environment. After months of construction the roundabouts are almost completely finished. Luckily, the City of Raleigh has put together a manual (.pdf) on how to navigate the Hillsborough/Pullen intersection. Aside from the obvious right lane=right turn/left lane=(eventual)left-turn, The rules are really simple:

• If you are going straight on Pullen toward Cameron Village (CV), then stay in the left lane
• If you are going straight on Hillsborough toward Meredith, then stay in the right lane.
• If you are going straight on Pullen toward Western Blvd or on Hillsborough St toward downtown, then either lane will do.

(and they say this will reduce the number of accidents?)

Simple enough? Now read the manual or this will happen to you! (NSFW)

During the weekend of August 20, Raleigh will be revving with excitement as the Carolina Classics at the Capital (www.classicsatthecapital.com) brings the Southeast’s largest indoor car show to the Raleigh Convention Center. This family-friendly event will feature special show cars and auto parts vendors in the air-conditioned Convention Center, displays of custom and classic automobiles on historic Fayetteville Street, a KidsZone with inflatable attractions, and prizes awarded by Southern Classic Cars NC Inc.

Many of the Southeast’s premier classic cars be featured at the Carolina Classics at the Capital, including a 1940 Cadillac LaSalle, a 1961 Chevy Impala Bubbletop and a 1969 Camaro RS/SS, just to name a few.

Top vendors already committed to the show include Danchuk Manufacturing, Pypes Performance Exhaust, Northern Tool and Equipment, Hamlett’s Chevy Parts, Detailer’s Dream, Page’s Custom, Ausley’s Chevelle Parts and Quality Air Tools.

With no charge for viewing the classic cars that will be parked on the closed-off Fayetteville Street, plus just $10 for admission to the Convention Center, this first-of-its-kind event is expected to attract thousands of attendees. Tickets can be purchased on site at the Raleigh Convention Center.

The festivities will culminate with an awards ceremony on Sunday, Aug. 22 at 1 p.m. on the Fayetteville Street Stage, with awards for Top 50, Sweet 16 and the Sir Walter Raleigh Cup.

“We’ve gotten great cooperation from the City of Raleigh, the Convention Center and automobile enthusiasts to make sure that everyone will have a good time,” said Greg Cox, one of the event’s organizers. “We hope this family-friendly event will become an annual tradition on the auto show circuit.”

One blog that discusses transit is the Antiplanner, where very few heavy rail projects pass the test. Today’s focus for the blog is Charlotte’s light rail service. The Antiplanner states that the Lynx system turned out to cost twice as much as projected, subsidizes 97% of the rider’s operating costs, and gave generous tax incentives for developers to simply shift development that was slated to happen regardless.

The article does not address how buses keyed into traffic signals along South Boulevard could have accomplished the same transit function during almost all periods during the year. Nor does it address the real estate value inflation for land convenient to Lynx line stops, making affordable living out of reach for many who could have benefited from a half-billion dollar taxpayer investment.

The article raises some good points. However Lynx has exceeded anticipated ridership numbers. The only question there is: were the numbers cooked to insure the investment’s “success”. More of a concern, though, is that the current Blue Line is only Phase I of a master plan that cannot be built with the system’s own funding. What’s next? Probably more sales pitches by government and transit officials to get taxpayers to expand a system which doesn’t even remotely come close to paying for itself…all in the name of “sustainable development”.

The N.C. Department of Transportation will hold an information session tomorrow (Thursday, the 17th) at the Rialto Theater. The meeting, which runs from 4pm to 6pm, concerns upcoming work on Glenwood Avenue between Five Points and Wade Avenue.

Fresh off the heels of a story on WRAL this morning, the DOT was out on I-440 “removing” graffiti from the all-brick Great Wall of Raleigh. Did they sandblast the paint off? No. Did they paint over it with brick-colored paint? No. They decided to camouflage the defacing marks with….beige. Is Lady Gaga in charge of this restoration?

Par for the course in state government, something is being done, but it isn’t the right way. The City of Raleigh has the right attitude about graffiti: get it off and get it off quickly. The point is that publicly visible marks should be removed to avoid rewarding this disrespect for personal and public property. The state? Oh they did something about it, by leaving scars. I wonder if these people would be happy with amalgam fillings in their front teeth.

How hard is it to buy some tinted paint? Answer: It isn’t, for people who take pride in their work. This is one of the many cases where it costs no more money to do it the right way than to slop together some result and call it “done”. What a great message to the public from our government.

You can call (919) 733-2191 to request the job be done right, but honestly, you’ll probably get some self-hating, excuse-making slacker who can’t muster enough pride to do a job the right way.

The Federal Railroad Administration and the States of North Carolina and Virginia have been hard at work drafting proposals for the Southeast High(er) Speed Rail (SEHSR) corridor between Raleigh and Richmond. Throughout July, they will conduct a series of hearings in the SEHSR region to provide the public with opportunities to review and comment on proposed designs. The 162-mile project will allow for limited stop service traveling at an average of 86mph, roughly 20% faster than interstate highway traffic in the corridor.

As designed the 162-mile project will be completely grade-separated, so around 100 new bridges and overpasses will have to be implemented. One such location will be Jones Street at 518 West. Due to the adjacent rail corridor Jones street will either have to be cut-off or fly over the tracks. Detailed situations like this can have impacts on neighborhoods and businesses, and are a part of this discussion.

The meeting for Raleigh will be held on July 26 at the Raleigh Convention Center. AN open house will run from 5-7pm and the formal public hearing will begin at 7pm.

It just wouldn’t be a Raleigh amphitheater if The Connells couldn’t open it! Almost exactly 19 years ago The Connells opened Raleigh’s Walnut Creek Amphitheater. Tonight’s open house gives citizens free entry to their newest public property with the city’s most popular music act to date. It also gives the amphitheater staff a dry run on how the place really works with people attending. This event will be packed, so be sure to check out the parking ideas below.

The Amphitheater (which should be named for Sir Walter Raleigh) is located across the street from the Raleigh Convention Center Shimmer Wall, at McDowell and Cabarrus. (map it)

Open House

The events kick off at 5pm with this schedule for bands:

• 5:20 to 5:50 Th’ Bullfrog Willard Mcgee
• 6:00 to 6:25 The Small Ponds
• 6:45 to 7:10 Sleep Control
• 7:30 to 7:55 Old Avenue
• 8:15 to 8:40 Mosadi Music
• 9:00 to 9:35 I Was Totally Destroying It (video)
• 9:55 to 10:55 The Connells

Access/Parking

First off, I would avoid the SW of quadrant downtown when going to events, unless you are eating at Humble Pie, Five Star, or Jibarra beforehand.

For those coming on-I-40 from Wilmington, Durham, Chapel Hill, and Greensboro, take the Hammond Rd. exit, get on Northbound Hammond Road (From Wilmington, turn right. From RTP, turn left). (map it) This will become Person Street. At Cabarrus Street, turn left, and park across from the Lincoln Theatre in the Progress II Deck (map it). The amphitheater is a short, 3-block walk.

For those in Raleigh coming from the North, the best bet is probably to shoot for any of these decks: City Hall (map it), Progress II Deck (map it), or Martin Street Decks (across from Progress II). Best of all, though, would be the Hannover Deck (underground) or the Cabarrus Deck (across from the Sheraton). Those two are best accessed by coming down Salisbury Street from the Capitol.

There are many, many more parking options, though, and a map of all of them can be found online.

R-Line

Don’t forget the R-Line! Downtown Raleigh’s free circulator bus comes every 10-15 minutes, and goes right to the door of the amphitheater. Because of routing uncertainties, I’m not sure I’d rely on this method until after the facility has had some events. The City of Raleigh will undoubtedly make moves to ease the ensuing vehicular/pedestrian strain on McDowell Street, and this may involve closing the street for periods around events. This could affect the R-Line’s routing and timing. We’ll see. You can check the R-Line real-time bus locations online.

If the R-Line turns out to be a good idea, then eating in the Glenwood South area will be a fantastic option before a concert. The R-Line’s counterclockwise routing makes this area favorable.

Rickshaws

No doubt, a rickshaw is the coolest way to take your baby to the show. Raleigh Rickshaws tend to be most popular in the Fayetteville Street area.