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A Showcase of New Vehicle Choices and Information for the Conscientious Consumer

Hampton Roads’ first Green Machine Expo will be held on September 25 in Norfolk’s Ghent Business District. The outdoor event will give residents and visitors a chance to learn about alternatives to today’s gas guzzling vehicles. Located across from the Naro Cinema at Colley and Spotswood Avenues in the Blair Middle School parking lots, Saturday’s expo schedule, from 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. will feature gas-electric hybrids, high mileage/low emission vehicles, educational displays and exhibits, and representatives from a wide array of community groups. Noon – 4 p.m. will include a meetup with owners of “green machines” showing their cars and participating in a road rally.

The Green Machine Expo is free and open to the public.
What is a “green machine”? Any vehicle that achieves high gas mileage and low emissions. This includes:
  • Hybrid cars
  • High-efficiency gasoline vehicles
  • Diesel vehicles
  • Natural gas cars
  • Electric cars and buses
Why own and operate a green machine and why are people expressing so much interest in these new vehicles?
  • The number one reason is money, these vehicles can cut gasoline expenses in half, or more.
  • Patriotic issues, i.e., less reliance on foreign fuel supplies (particularly from the Middle East), decrease in foreign trade deficit, keeps more money in the country while providing American jobs.
  • Environmental reasons – lower emissions mean cleaner air and cleaner water, lowering of greenhouse gasses which will mitigate the effects of global warming.
The Green Machine Expo is being held in cooperation with the Hampton Roads Clean Cities Coalition (funded by the Department of Energy), whose mission is to improve air quality in Hampton Roads and to promote alternative fuel vehicles.

Part of the Green Machine Expo is the second annual Green Screen Environmental Film Festival, being held on the same weekend at the Naro Cinema on Colley Avenue in Norfolk’s Ghent section. Although environmental groups and car manufacturers often are at odds with each other, they will join together at the Green Machine Expo for a common goal – preserving our environment, creating national energy independence, and saving consumers money.

Present at the expo will be representatives from non-profit organizations including, Tidewater Bicycle Association, Lynnhaven River 2007, HRCCC, and Norfolk Environmental Commission. Vehicle manufacturers present at the Expo include Ford, Toyota, Honda of America, and General Wesley Clark’s new company Wavecrest Labs, manufacturer of the high-performance electric bicycle, the TidalForce M-750.

Hampton Roads Transit will have displays informing about light rail transit, clean commute day, and new vehicle technologies.Solar Services of Va Beach will display new solar heating panels and photovoltaic technology.

For more information, please contact Joel Mednick at (757) 553-0150 or Tench Phillips at (757) 625-6275, or e-mail green@narocinema.com.