Interesting Renewable Energy Methods

Speed Bumps have been making people hit their heads on the roof of the car since 1981 when they were introduced. They now have a use other than just trying to get us to slow down....they can produced renewable energy, in fact just 10 of these speed bumps will create the same amount of energy as a wind turbine - no noise, no blot on the landscape.  

“Green” speed bumps generate power as cars drive over them. They will power street lights, traffic lights and road signs. These speed bumps will capture the kinetic energy ('moving energy')

Peter Hughes, the man behind the idea, said: "They are speed bumps, but they are not like conventional speed bumps. They don't damage your car or waste petrol when you drive over them."

A conventional speed bump

The speed humps are quite pricey though- starting at £20,000 (about $50,000), they can cost as much as £55,000 (about $130,000) EACH!!! It's thought they can pay for themselves within around six years. I suppose it's not too bad considering normal speed humps cost around £2,000 anyway!

The new eco-speedbumps which produce renewable energy 

It works by when the car drives over the speedbump, panels on the bump itself move up and down, causing a cog to move underneath it. This then turns a motor, when causes mechanical energy.

The "electro-kinetic road ramp" system can either be raised to act as a speed bump or laid flat, so that drivers don't realise they are passing over it.

The Ealing Council in the UK is funding this project with £150,000 ($375,000), which will kick off in 2009-2010. The number of speed bumps that will be installed in the Ealing shire still needs to be finalised. Just like the Ealing council, more than 200 councils in the UK are interested in introducing the Speed bumps, and even a major shopping centre (Morrisons) are interested in a version for it's depot in Kent.

In Rotterdam, in the Netherlands, a night club was opened about a year ago that ran partly on energy generated by people dancing on a dancefloor using a similar idea to the speed bumps.

That would certainly reduce the guilt factor from having a night out to know you were off-setting the carbon it took to get there!

The eco-dance floor...have fun and reduce your carbon footprint!