BY KELLEN M. HENRY– MEDILL NEWS SERVICE

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency isn’t sure whether General Motors’ triple digit mileage claims will meet the road for its Chevrolet Volt when it is released next year.

The ailing automaker announced Tuesday following a viral marketing campaign that its forthcoming plug-in car will have an estimated fuel [...]

BY KELLEN M. HENRY– MEDILL NEWS SERVICE

New orders for manufactured goods increased 0.4 percent the U.S. Census Bureau reported Wednesday in a preliminary report on the manufacturing industry in June, following a 1.1 percent increase in May.

Factory orders were expected to fall 0.8 percent, according to a survey of economists by [...]

American automakers are hoping to market the idea that smaller can be better, when it comes to cars. Europe and Japan have successfully marketed smaller vehicles for years. (Blog.wired.com)

BY: KIRAN SOOD – MEDILL NEWS SERVICE

Consumers might be willing to pay $2,000 to $3,000 more for a hybrid [...]

A display at the Chicago Auto Show for the Chevrolet Volt, by General Motors Corp. It is the first extended-range vehicle intended for commuters. (Kiran Sood/ MEDILL)

BY KIRAN SOOD – MEDILL NEWS SERVICE

As automakers continue to push alternative fuel vehicles on the floors of showrooms across [...]

BY TIAN HUANG - MEDILL NEWS SERVICE

The weather outside is still frightful in Chicago, but for college students, spring break is just around the corner, which, if you go by MTV stereotypes, means a crazy week of partying in Cancun or Panama [...]

It's quick and easy, but adds an extra $5-10 to your airfare (Courtesy: Orbitz Inc.)

BY HOLLIS TEMPLETON – MEDILL NEWS SERVICE

While online travel agencies like Expedia, Travelocity and Chicago-based Orbitz claim to deliver the lowest prices on airfare, [...]

By JASON M. BRESLOW — MEDILL NEWS SERVICE

Southwest Airlines Co. [[LUV]] will be eliminating 22 departures to 20 cities from Chicago’s Midway International Airport beginning in January.

The cuts are part of a plan announced Tuesday by the airline to cut approximately 5 percent, or 196 flights, from its daily schedule of 3,400 [...]

BY MARJORIE KORN, MEDILL NEWS SERVICE

Home Depot Inc. [[HD]] saw its net earnings tumble 24 percent for the second quarter of 2008 to $1.2 billion, or 71 cents per diluted share, from $1.6 billion, or 77 cents per diluted share this time last year. Despite its [...]

By JASON M. BRESLOW — MEDILL NEWS SERVICE

Retail sales may be down out on the streets, but in airport terminals times couldn’t be be more promising, says a new report from the British firm Verdict Research. According to the study, airport retail sales are set to rise [...]

By JASON M. BRESLOW – MEDILL NEWS SERVICE

It didn’t take long for Congress to respond to the European Commission’s decision in April to OK the use of mobile phones on airplanes. In just a matter of days Rep. Peter DeFazio, an Oregon Democrat, introduced the cryptically titled “Halting [...]