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OCT. 25, 2013
CANADIAN COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER AWARD 2012
TRI-CITY NEWS
www.tricitynews.com
CANADIAN COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER AWARD 2012
Election & experience
New section: driveway
SEE PAGE 11; ALSO, SEE PAGE 10
SECTION STARTS ON PAGE 19
INSIDE
Letters/12 Things-to-do Guide/17 Market Fresh/29 Sports/39 drivewayBC.ca |
Welcome to the
driver’s seat
In a two-hour drive, the only time I dropped the anchors was when one of Amsterdam’s kazillion cyclists cut in front of me. Keith Morgan
The BMWi electric car
powered its way with
ease around city streets
and along picturesque
The future is ele
AMSTERDAM – BMW has joined the race for the electric car dollar. On the evidence of two days the funky-looking all-electric driving i3 through the narrow streets of old Amsterdam and alongside the picturesque canals of rural Holland, the German manufacturer may have a winner. For starters, it is simply great fun to drive. The lithium-ion battery, encased in an aluminum cage below five-seater cabin, provides the enough instant zap to the electric motor to propel the car smoothly to 100 klicks in less than eight seconds. Left the stopwatch
at home, but counting “one-and-two etc.” to count seconds, my lips barely mouthed “six” before the speedo leapt from 80 to 120 km/h while passing. It handles beautifully at any speed and hugs the road; thanks to the technology-laden aluminum platform, that gives it a very low centre of gravity. Turns on a Euro too, as we found during the many U-turns made on blocked streets. Of course, F1 take-offs will suck the battery dry somewhat more quickly but you need not be a snail in the so-called Comfort mode to achieve the advertised 160 kilometres range on a full
Dutch canals.
KEITH MORGAN
ctric
Question
tank, sorry, fully-charged battery. Plug it in at you have a car for the home overnight and Interior and beyond. you Way are ready to roar; go beyond. As the battery for the enhanced charger runs low, a two-cylinder, and raring to go in 647cc gas engine, which three hours. sits neatly by the side The remarkable efficiency of its electric brother, is largely due to two kicks in and generates factors. The carbon-fibre power to top up the body is light and regenerbattery. Push it and The lithium-ion gas ative braking generously stops will be frequent battery provides juices up the cells. In because only a minuscule enough instant zap a two-hour drive, the nine-litre tank feeds it. only time I dropped to the electric motor However, most folks will the anchors was when get a chance to recharge one to propel the car of Amsterdam’s kazillion before too many visits to smoothly to 100 cyclists cut in front the pump. of me. Ruined my score, There is another hope the klicks in less than blighter. for those living beyond eight seconds. Accepting the more Hope. Private companies sluggish EcoPro and EcoPro+ Keith Morgan are seriously evaluating modes will add 20 the supply of fast charand 40 km to the range. gers that top up batteries Frankly, in this configuration in less than half an hour. Eyes will be on the good for any daily commute the i3, is Sea-to-Sky Highway where chargers are Vancouver and Abbotsford between now found at Briand most tannia Beach. And they journeys in southern Vancouver Island. are in parking lots the length popping up The very areas where BMW expects to and breadth of the province as the do the most business. popularity of plug-in hybrid models The i3 offers premium by other brands brand luxury for grows. few dollars short of $45,000. Shell out another $4,000 grand View our BMWi3 for the unimaggallery and read inatively named ‘range-extende more about the electric car at r’ and drivewayBC.ca
OF THE WEEK:
We all have a favourite car in our past. What was your best car ever and why? Go to drivewayBC.ca to submit your answer and enter to win a $100 Safeway gift card Post a photo if you have one.
‘‘
More cuts coming in District 43 ’’
SD43 savings plan to cover CUPE wage increases By Diane Strandberg THE TRI-CITY NEWS
School District 43 will have to dip into international education revenues this year and cut jobs next year to help cover the cost of anticipated wage increases for the district’s CUPE support workers after the board of education approved a savings plan Tuesday. “Don’t you feel you’ve got a gun to your head?” said Coquitlam Trustee Brian Robinson before
Safety Tip:
As drivers, please slow down next week and be extra vigilant, especially around residential areas. Children are always caught up in the excitement of Halloween and can easily forget the rules of the road.
Find more online at
drivewayBC.ca
trustees unanimously voted on a plan to make $985,100 in cuts this year and $1.7 million in cuts next year to cover the predicted wage hikes stemming from a deal negotiated — but not funded — by the province. Much of the savings will have to come out of next year’s budget when the bulk of the wage hikes kick in, resulting in an anticipated reduction of $653,345 in so-called non-core staff.This comes as the district has already whittled $12.1 million from its budget this year to remove a deficit. see ‘GOV. SHOULD’, page 16
Another month for PoMo shelter Church shelters fill gaps in winter By Dan Ebenal THE TRI-CITY NEWS
DIANE STRANDBERG/THE TRI-CITY NEWS
Gleneagle secondary Leadership 12 student Stephanie Yu stands with Ian Tyson, a comedian who performed a high-energy motivational presentation for students at the Coquitlam school on Wednesday. For details of the presentation, in which Tyson urged kids to make high school a positive and memorable experience and a time when they reach out to their peers, see story at www.tricitynews.com.
The trial of Cory Sater wrapped up Wednesday with the accused hit-and-run driver pleading guilty to leaving the scene. A ruling on the other charges will come in January. See page 8
Port Moody council is rolling out the welcome mat to ensure the TriCities’ homeless people aren’t left out in the cold. Council directed staff Tuesday to move ahead with a zoning bylaw amendment that will double the amount of time a temporary overnight shelter can operate at St. Andrew’s United Church on St. Johns Street.
St. Andrew’s is already scheduled to operate a temporary shelter in March and the amendment would allow a temporary shelter to be set up in the church in January as well. “I’m grateful that’s the direction we’re heading,” said Rob Thiessen of the Hope for Freedom Society. He said Port Moody’s bylaw will allow the community to operate a shelter two months every year as opposed to simply grant a one-time temporary use. see NO PROBLEMS, page 6