[GM delivered a hydrogen powered Chevy Equinox to the EPA.  GM’s project driveway is an effort to get fuel cell and other innovative vehicles out of the laboratory and in the hands of real people and real situations so that GM can continue to develop and evolve the technology.  Hopefully the EPA will use them not only to further develop test methods for fuel cell MPG testing, but also encourage employees to use the vehicle in real-world driving situations as well. — Bruce]

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), responsible for promoting a cleaner and healthier environment for Americans, today joined forces with General Motors as part of a long-standing commitment to hydrogen fuel cell commercialization.

Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Stephen L. Johnson (left) and General Motors Vice President Environment, Energy and Safety Policy Beth Lowery

With the delivery of a Chevy Equinox Fuel Cell Electric vehicle, the EPA will be the newest participant in Chevrolet’s Project Driveway – – an innovative market test that is helping to bring fuel cell electric vehicle technology to market.

Over the next six months, the EPA Headquarters motor pool will use the vehicle to conduct business in Washington, D.C. – -emissions free – while allowing the on-board electronic recording devices to track the real-world performance data.

“The EPA’s history of research and testing of fuel cells and other advanced technologies make them an important partner for Project Driveway,” said Elizabeth Lowery, vice president, Environment, Energy and Safety Policy at GM. “Together, our organizations have learned a great deal about hydrogen fuel cells and we look forward to furthering the commercialization of this important technology.”

The EPA’s participation in Project Driveway is the latest partnership with GM in which the agency has helped the automaker test advanced propulsion systems. Beginning in 2005, the agency provided performance feedback for more than a year on GM’s HydroGen3 fuel cell vehicle. That data helped the development of the Chevy Equinox Fuel Cell electric vehicle on roads today. It uses no petroleum and zero greenhouse gases are released. The only emission is clean water vapor.

Project Driveway is an important facet of Chevrolet’s “Gas Friendly to Gas Free” strategy to offer advanced technologies that enable a variety of fuel solutions and remove the automobile from the environment and energy equation. More than 100 Equinox fuel cell vehicles are in the hands of real customers to help Chevy and GM understand what it will take to bring larger numbers of fuel cell vehicles to customers around the world. Currently, the program has launched in Los Angeles, metropolitan New York and Washington, D.C., with further deployments in Europe and Asia later this year.