It feels like green ideas in the auto industry have been shoved off the front page. Financial meltdowns and auto-industry bailouts have a little to do with that. Fair enough, but we'll be buying cars and living on the planet for a long time to come and there's still green auto news out there.

Fortunately, a lot of this news has come out of the Geneva Motor show shedding light on what eco-friendly car ideas are brewing in Europe. Not planning a trip to Switzerland anytime soon? Not to worry,Car journalist Richard Aucock has listed the top green car ideas from the show.

Some of the highlights. Number 9 on the list would make electric cars practical and wide spread. French auto-maker Renault will introduce a Europe-wide network of electric car filing stations where you could swap a used batter with a fully charged one. London has signed on to the idea which is expected to launch in 2012.

At number 3, Volkswagen will be releasing the Bluemotion II next year, a car that gets better mileage than the Prius but costs way less. Number one on Aucock's list? General Motor's much talked about Volt that could save the electric car and bring it to the masses. It's great news but will depend a lot on how (if?) GM will survive over the coming years.

Check out the rest of the green list at the Guardian. To get even more car coverage, check out our friend's at Autoblog for more news on the Geneva Motor show.