Congress wisely in the energy bill expanded a tax credit for purchase of hybrids and clean diesel vehicles up to as much as up to $3,400 per purchase. Congress also needs to simplify and speed up the permitting process for refinery construction and expansion. Discharge produces electricity and water when the process is reversed and the protons are combined with ambient oxygen. Attempts to use batteries as a source of electricity were made from the 1880s and 1890s, with unsuccessful trials conducted in among other places Bendigo and Adelaide in Australia, and for about 14 years as The Hague accutram of HTM in the Netherlands. The convenience and economy of electricity resulted in its rapid adoption once the technical problems of production and transmission of electricity were solved. In the mid-20th century many tram systems were disbanded, replaced by buses, trolleybuses, automobiles or rapid transit. Each tram has two power collection skates, next to which are antennas that send radio signals to energize the power rail segments as the tram passes over them.

A ground-level power supply system, also called surface current collection or alimentation par le sol (APS), is an updated version of the original stud type system. It was called conduit current collection. More recently, an equivalent to these systems has been developed which allows for the safe installation of a third rail on city streets, known as surface current collection or ground-level power supply; the main example of this is the new tramway in Bordeaux. The success of the PCC streetcar had also seen trams use automobile-style foot controls allowing hands-free operation, particularly when the driver was responsible for fare collection. If "grounded", the driver was required to jump off the tram (avoiding simultaneous contact with the tram and the ground) and pull down the trolley pole, before allowing passengers off the tram. Since the tram relies on contact with the rails for the current return path, a problem arises if the tram is derailed or (more usually) if it halts on a section of track that has been heavily sanded by a previous tram, and the tram loses electrical contact with the rails. So we installed two more 6 Volt Prius Batteries mn and connected it to the main battery system that is under the bench seats.

At any one time no more than two consecutive segments under the tram should be live. Ground-level power supply has become a more recent innovation. Alstom developed the system primarily to avoid intrusive power supply cables in the sensitive area of the old city of old Bordeaux. In 2019, the West Midlands Metro in Birmingham, England adopted battery-powered trams on sections through the city centre close to Grade I listed Birmingham Town Hall. Electric trams use various devices to collect power from overhead lines. In New York City some minor lines also used storage batteries. The old tram systems in London, Manhattan (New York City), and Washington, D.C., used live rails, like those on third-rail electrified railways, but in a conduit underneath the road, from which they drew power through a plough. There was one particular hazard associated with trams powered from a trolley pole off an overhead line on the early electrified systems. The most common device is the pantograph, while some older systems use trolley poles or bow collectors. While cities are tasked to regulate and steward their streets, there is a balance between over-regulation, industry support and aligning shared interests.

In the 21st century, trams have been re-introduced in cities where they had been closed down for decades (such as Tramlink in London), or kept in heritage use (such as Spårväg City in Stockholm). Most systems start by building up a strongly nucleated radial pattern of routes linking the city centre with residential suburbs and traffic hubs such as railway stations and hospitals, usually following main roads. Older systems required mechanical switching systems which were susceptible to environmental problems. Wireless and solid state switching eliminate mechanical problems. Even small potholes can cause serious damage, such as wheel alignment problems. Hydrate isomerism can be alleviated by adding chelating amino-ligands, while hydrogen evolution can be mitigated by adding Pb salts to increase the H2 overvoltage and Au salts for catalyzing the chromium electrode reaction. It has both an electric and kerosene-fired heater set up so they can be run individually or in tandem." There are two chargers on board, one each for the front and back battery packs. "We've known how to make electric cars for a while. There are two main types of tramways, the classic tramway built in the early 20th century with the tram system operating in mixed traffic, and the later type which is most often associated with the tram system having its own right of way.