Multi-Million Dollar Competition Narrowing Search for U.S. Cities Interested in Hosting Stages of the Cross Country Race

SANTA MONICA, CA, July 1, 2008— As American consumers face record-breaking prices at the gas pump and rethink their driving habits, the Progressive Insurance Automotive X PRIZE, a multi-million dollar competition designed to inspire a new generation of super fuel efficient vehicles, is finding strong interest from U.S. cities vying to host a stage of its 2009-2010 competition.

The technology-neutral competition, a project of the X PRIZE Foundation, is open to teams from around the world that can design and build production-capable, 100 MPGe (miles per gallon energy equivalent) vehicles that people will want to buy and that meet market needs for price, size, capability, safety and performance. Winners of the $10 million prize purse will need to exceed 100 MPG equivalent fuel economy, fall under strict emissions caps and finish in the fastest time.

Since distributing a request for proposal (RFP) to the top 100 U.S. media markets in April, the Progressive Automotive X PRIZE has been in discussions with city, state and community leaders across the country interested in the opportunity to host a stage race and simultaneously showcase their own local green efforts. Cities representing a diverse geographic and demographic mix – such as Albuquerque, Boston, Cleveland, Dallas, Detroit, Denver, Indianapolis, New York, Las Vegas, Long Beach, Pasadena, Portland, San Francisco, Seattle, and St. Louis – have all expressed interest in the competition.