The U.S Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA)* today announced it is proposing a new rule to significantly improve the detection and repair of leaks from gas pipelines. As directed by the bipartisan PIPES Act of 2020,** the proposed rule would “deploy pipeline workers across the country to keep more product in the pipe and prevent dangerous accidents. These actions, if finalized, would boost efficiency, cut harmful pollution and waste, and create an estimated up to $2.3 billion annually in benefits,” PHMSA said.
“Quick detection of methane leaks is an important way to keep communities safe and help curb climate change,” said US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “We are proposing a long-overdue modernization of the way we identify and fix methane leaks, thereby reducing emissions and strengthening protections for the American people.” Continue reading
Toyota Auto Insurance Now in California
Toyota Auto Insurance,* the Japanese automaker’s “branded” insurance product, is now available to customers living in California, Toyota said today in a release from Plano, Texas. Introduced in some markets in 2021, Toyota Auto Insurance offers customizable coverage at what it claims are affordable rates. California is the US’s most populous state and largest auto market.
Toyota Auto Insurance, underwritten in California by 21st Century Casualty Company, is available for both Toyota and non-Toyota vehicles in a customer’s household. It’s just the latest example of how the auto insurance market with connected cars is being altered by data-based pricing and sophisticated almost real-time risk calculations. Toyota and other automakers are processing and analyzing data from vehicle use from the growing worldwide fleet of connected vehicles Continue reading →