Author Archives: lukefrugalev

Come late October, we are having an election in Ontario, electing our municipal government, in my case in Toronto, a mayor and a city council need electing. With that, its time to discuss some ideas that might help speed the transition away from fossil fuels. Surprisingly there is an awful lot municipal government can doContinue reading “How Toronto can help speed the energy transition”

One of the clever bits of the new electric vehicle affordability program (EVAP) here in Canada, is that every year, on January 1st, the rebate drops by another grand. So my dear reader, in a few months time, that dream EV of yours will cost you an extra grand. All the more reason to getContinue reading “Get you new EV now”

On a sunny day visiting relatives in California, I noticed that one the neighbourhood garbage trucks was electric. What an excellent idea, garbage trucks rarely travel far, spend much of their time cruising through residential areas, meandering from bin to bin. I surely appreciated the lower volume of the EV, compared to the gas poweredContinue reading “Electric Garbage Trucks”

Mr. Carney recently announced an extension of the gas tax holiday, briefly eliminating the a 10 c/litre levy on gasolene (4c/l for Diesel and Aviation fuel) until January 31st 2027. Perhaps unsurprisingly, I feel this is a mistake. Yes it is true that gas prices have increased since Mr. Trump went to war with IranContinue reading “The fallacy of the gas tax holiday”

At the time of this writing Canada’s forests are on fire, fuelled by climate change (source), wild-fire smoke is choking much of Toronto, and the population centres of the eastern seaboard. Apocalyptic images fill social media, and the cause is well known. A casual survey suggested that most people know climate change is to blame.Continue reading “Where is the Canadian environmentalist?”

Once a back-bone of the Canadian auto-industry, the big three (GM, Ford and Stellantis) have been steadily reducing their Canadian manufacturing footprint for some time, Mr. Trump has in many ways accelerated their exit from the Canadian market, mostly to the benefit of Mexico. These days, with the exception of specialised trucks, the only vehicleContinue reading “Are the big three gone from Canada?”

The higher sticker price of EVs is a major turn-off for potential EV drivers. While “fuelling” is much cheaper in an EV, as is maintenance, that sticker price (and the associated higher insurance costs), kinda kills the “fuel” and maintenance gains. Here in Toronto Canada, we are enjoying a bit of a discount EV moment.Continue reading “Cheaper EVs are here”

Now with my third EV, we can look back and compare our journey with the different EVs. The original Nissan Leaf (2015), second generation Nissan Leaf (2018), and the 2026 Kia EV4. Overall advancement in EV technology are evident, with journey times greatly reduced as technology has improved. Lifestyle wise, the biggest jump for meContinue reading “North Bay three ways”

Mr. Trumps middle-east adventures continue at the time of this writing in July of 2026. It is quite the drama, but setting all this aside, what is remarkable is the absence of “crazy-high-gas-prices”. Particularly given that several of the worlds large oil producers are under strain. Something is different this time around, compared to historicalContinue reading “Where is the gas-price spike?”

As a homeowner in a detached house, installing solar, is a fairly straightforward project. Yes perhaps the whole three inspector thing is a bit much, but it is doable at a reasonable cost (quote an earlier blog). But a third of Canadians rent (source), with perhaps another sixth living in Condominiums (source). Try as theyContinue reading “Balcony solar”