Solar car to stay off Alberta highway after brush with RCMP
Last Updated: Monday, June 29, 2009 | 3:58 PM MT
CBC News
A solar-powered car will be staying off one of Alberta's main highways after an encounter with the RCMP just south of Red Deer.
Marcelo da Luz, a resident of Toronto, has driven the single-seat vehicle almost 40,000 kilometers without the help of gasoline and had passed through Alberta on an earlier journey.
The solar-powered car has a top speed of 120 km/h. It can travel 500 kilometres on a sunny day. (CBC) So Da Luz was surprised when he was pulled over by the RCMP on Sunday afternoon on Highway 2.
"We were told we couldn't drive the car on the road. So that was a little dramatic moment on the tour," said da Luz. "We talked to the officer and showed him the documentation. But he was very adamant about making sure it was legal before allowing us to get back on the road."
Even though the solar car is unconventional, da Luz insists the Canadian government has granted him the right to use the country's roads through a 1949 traffic treaty that recognizes the legality of vehicles registered in signatory countries. The solar-powered car is registered in Barbados
After some consultation, the RCMP decided not to ticket da Luz, nor tow the car. Instead police escorted the vehicle into Red Deer.
Da Luz said he will stick to secondary roads for the rest of the trip through Alberta.
"I've been pulled by the police over 20 times since I began the tour. In Alaska someone called 911 about a UFO in the road," he said.
The vehicle, called the "Power of One" or Xof1, is an electric car that is powered only by sunlight and has a top speed of 120 km/hour. It can travel 500 km on a sunny day. Da Luz said he built his vehicle independently, without corporate sponsorship, in order to demonstrate how one person can make a difference in helping the environment.
Last year, da Luz set a new world distance record by zigzagging across Canada. This trip he is planning to return north to the Arctic Circle.
