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The Department of Transportation and Department of Energy’s Hydrogen Road Tour 08’ made a stop today in the nation’s capital.  The cross-country tour features the latest in hydrogen technology from 9 different manufacturers – and puts you behind the wheel!

BMW, Chevy, Honda, Hyundai, Kia, and Volkswagen all had demonstration vehicles available for the general public to drive.  And hundreds of tourists, attendee’s, and members of the press used the opportunity to get a feel for America’s transportation future.  We even spotted Callista Gingrich, wife of former U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Newt Gingrich taking a Chevy Equinox for a drive.

Callista Gingrich driving a Chevy Equinox Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicle.

Despite the impressive range of these cars, much of their cross country voyage will unfortunately be aboard a transport truck.  Only a hand-full of states currently have hydrogen fueling stations, making an emissions-free, gasoline-free tour of the country impossible as of now.  With such limited infrastructure for hydrogen fueling in place, the car of the future remains handicapped by today’s oil dependence.  We look forward to a road tour in the future that won’t require such dependency.

If you would like to get behind the wheel of one of these cars, please visit the Road Tour 08’ web page for more details.  The two-week event will be stopping in more than 30 cities across 18 states between now and August 24th.

Engineers and attendees look under the hood at the latest in hydrogen technology.