Current Affairs

Rarely can a year-end review get as depressing as in 2008. In January we were anxiously awaiting the Tesla, Smart, and Volt. Now we really can't afford a Tesla, we can't even afford a Smart, and we're still awaiting the Volt (though not as anxiously, since we
definitely won't be able to afford it.) For those self-loathing readers who must revisit one of the worst years in recent memory, we present to you Autopia's Top Transportation Moments of 2008:

1.)
High Gas Prices

The
New England International Auto Showis more of a trade show than a car show. It's sponsored by an auto dealers association, and is as staid and provincial as its host city of Boston. Instead of unveiling new concepts to great fanfare, dealers and manufacturers hawk their wares and try to generate leads amongst would-be car buyers interested in cross-shopping an Avalon and a Lucerne.

In a cost-cutting move, Buick has ended its long-running partnership with golf great Tiger Woods and drastically reduced the number of courtesy cars they provide for PGA Tour events.

With Election Day upon us, Sens. John McCain and Barack Obama have shifted their focus from tearing each other apart to getting out the vote. They want every one of their supporters to pull a lever, tap a touchscreen or punch a ballot, and they're doing everything they can to get them to the polls.

Convincing people to vote is different than actually getting them to vote, and the campaigns — and their armies of supporters — know it. So they're pulling out all the stops to get voters to the polls. "We have drivers and we have vans," Obama volunteer Val Scarborough told Wired.com. "We're doing everything in our power to get people out."

In less than 24 hours, some of the first polls will be closing in Vermont and Virginia. Soon after, GM and Ford plants will be closing in Michigan and Ohio. Regardless of alternative fuels and flashy designs, how well the auto industry fares for the next four years depends on election results and tax policies according to Art Spinella, the mustachioed force behind
CNW Marketing Research.