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Category: Travel (Page 9 of 17)

97% of Canadian EV drivers will purchase another when it comes time to replace their existing EV

2023-04-29 /
  • 89% enjoy driving their EV more than their ICE vehicle.

Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) »

The survey of over 16,000 EV owners from coast to coast found their top concern is the availability of public charging. More than four out of every 10 (44%) EV drivers say that this is a worry even after experiencing EV ownership. Significantly, EV owners say they spend 30% of their time charging outside the home. 

Further, a significant minority lack confidence in taking road trips in their EV. More than one-third of those surveyed (36%) don’t have the confidence to drive their EV on a long road trip, and most EV drivers (67%) still own a gas vehicle, which they are more likely to use for longer journeys. 

The survey asked respondents to rate their level of pre-purchase concern against their actual experience as EV drivers, in several categories. The survey found that while none of the concerns disappeared completely, they did significantly decline. Worries about range fell 37 percentage points to 30%, cold-weather performance concerns dropped 25 percentage points to 33%, and fears about battery degradation fell 41 percentage points to 13%. 

The survey also found satisfaction rates among EV drivers in Canada are extremely high. An overwhelming majority (97%) say they will purchase another EV when it comes time to replace their existing one. Almost nine in ten (89%) say they enjoy driving their EV more, 95% say their EV is more affordable, and 92% say their EV is a quieter ride than their gas vehicle. 

Plan your trip across the roads of the Roman Empire using modern mapping technology

2023-04-28 /

OmnesViae is a modern route planner based on the roads of the Roman Empire.

Big Think »

Geolocating thousands of points from Peutinger, OmnesViae reformats the roads and destinations on the scroll onto a more familiarly landscaped map. The shortest route between two (ancient) points is calculated using the distances travelled over Roman rather than modern roads, also taking into account the rivers and mountains the network must cross.

Japan has millions of empty houses. Want to buy one for US$25,000?

2023-04-27 /

The Business Times »

As Japan’s population shrinks and more properties go unclaimed, an emerging segment of buyers, feeling less tethered to overcrowded cities, is seeking out rural architecture in need of some love. The most recent government data, from the 2018 Housing and Land survey, reported about 8.5 million akiya across the country – roughly 14 per cent of the country’s housing stock – but observers say there are many more today. The Nomura Research Institute puts the number at more than 11 million, and predicts that akiya could exceed 30 per cent of all houses in Japan by 2033.

The importance of travel for learning

2023-04-27 /

New Statesman »

His book on American political life, published in two volumes between 1835 and 1840, was not to be read as a travelogue, he warned his readers. But besides being an aristocrat, liberal theorist and politician, he was also a perennial traveller – something that involved no little risk, both because of the greater inconvenience and danger of travel during his lifetime, and his own fragile health, which frequently cut short his trips and finally cut short his life in 1859 at just 53.

Tocqueville’s peregrinations form the subject of Jeremy Jennings’ new book, Travels with Tocqueville Beyond America – which, despite its title, devotes considerable attention to the famous trip to America, while delving also into less well-known voyages to Germany, Switzerland and Ireland, among other countries. The book’s objective is to “take Tocqueville seriously as a traveller”, which involves dissenting from the view of Tocqueville’s critics, who argue – according to Jennings – that the Frenchman “learned nothing from his travels and was more interested in mixing with the social elites of the country he was visiting”.

Motorcycles now banned from parts of The Pyrenees

2023-04-23 /

The ban excludes motorcycles, ATVs, quads, buggies, etc., from local roads and trails in the Parque Natural del Alto Pirineo, a national park in the Pyrenees and the largest in Catalonia, Spain.

The Pyrenees mountain range spread across Spain, France, and Andorra. The challenging twisty roads are known attract drivers and riders from around the world who seek challenging roads.

The regulations described in the ‘Action Plan for the declaration of a zone of special protection of acoustic quality in the Alt Pirineu Natural Park’ distinguishes motorcycles, mountain bikes, quads and buggies as ‘particularly noisy’ vehicles, without take into account their type approval or the level of decibels they emit.

The action plan includes the following:

  • Limit the passage of noisy vehicles to certain areas of the ZEPQA, taking into account the regulation of motorized traffic inside the park, restricting access to certain tracks either throughout the year or at certain periods.
  • Restrict motorized access to the entire network of forest trails and paved paths of the ZEPQA of Alt Àneu and Farrera, except the access roads to urban centres, by vehicles considered excessively noisy consisting of all types of vehicles such as motorcycles, quads, ATVs and buggies that are not electric, except those of registered residents, beneficiaries of livestock forest exploitation, public services and those duly authorized by the Alt Pirineo Natural Park and/or the respective local entities.
  • Promote the use of electric vehicles.
  • In addition, there is a specific point dedicated to ‘Carrying out awareness actions specifically aimed at drivers of vehicles that emit more noise: motorcycles, mountain bikes, quads and buggies.’

Read the whole article here.

Are technology-free hotels a trend of the future?

2022-05-19 /

Let’s hope so.

Inside Hook »

According to a 2018 study involving 2,000 U.S. adults, most check their phones an average of 80 times a day, or once every 12 minutes, while on vacation. Some even check their phone more than 300 times each day. A second study conducted in the same year and of the same sample size determined that 43% of U.S. adults find it difficult to completely unplug, specifically from work, while on vacation.

This was, of course, prior to the pandemic, which — thanks to the introduction of apps like Zoom and Slack — exacerbated the issue greatly.

…

Fast forward to 2022, and “technology-free” is now being pedaled as an amenity across several notable properties, whose guests seek them out because of it. Sheldon Chalet, for example, doesn’t have any TVs, phones — save for the emergency phone system — or wifi on the entire property. That, according to owner and property manager Marne Sheldon, is mostly due to Sheldon Chalet’s location — on a nunatak 10 miles from the summit of Denali in the Don Sheldon Amphitheater inside Alaska’s Denali National Park. In other words: the signal strength isn’t excellent. If anything, Sheldon counts it a selling point. »

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Be.

Do interesting things. Be bold. Respect. Adventure. Explore. Question. Listen. Learn. Try. Fail. Try better. Your mileage may vary. You are unique. Be yourself. Appreciate. Be kind. To others, with an equal measure to yourself. Do good. Do what’s right. It’s a one way ticket. Enjoy the ride. You are limited to one.

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