Can 401 Traffic Power a Wind Turbine?

Apparently not. Centennial College students set up a wind speed measuring device near Progress Campus last August, hoping to show that the road and its rushing traffic would help in generating power for a full-scale wind turbine. However:

Average wind speeds over a year, recorded at a 30-metre height, are "right on the margins of what would make a wind project there feasible," said Herb Sinnock, a Centennial instructor who helped make the case for installing the device.

Sinnock was hoping the college could justify a turbine at least as big the one on the Canadian National Exhibition grounds, enough to generate 1.5 megawatts of electricity.

This project likely won't happen now. However, a commendable attempt. Hopefully some of these new green technologies will pan out soon. I see the SkyDome black with solar cells, and a big wind turbine atop the CN Tower!