Transit No. 4

Monday, May 19, 2008

Saying Goodbye to Air Travel. It seems that Rich Heinberg says that the cost of fuel will end cheap air travel in the next few years, should energy prices not come down.

The airline industry has no future. The same is true for airfreight. No air carrier has a viable plan to make a profit with oil at current prices—much less in years to come as the petroleum available to world markets dwindles rapidly.

That’s not to say that jetliners will disappear overnight, but rather that the cheap flights we’ve seen in the past will soon be fading memories. In a few years jet service will be available only to the wealthy, or to the government and military.

I'm not that surprised. Flying planes takes a massive amount of jet fuel, and the pollution impacts are real as anybody who has ever stood near an airport knows. At $128 a barrel, there will still be planes for the foreseeable future, but it won't necessarily remain a popular way to get around our country.

Railroads in contrast, have a very bright future. People will start flocking to things like Amtrack, when it becomes competitive to airplanes, especially for shorter trips like Albany to Washington DC or Chicago. Planes trips from Albany to Syracuse or New York City, are certainly a thing of pass, especially should prices go up.

Read Saying Goodbye to Air Travel in Global Public Media. P'Link

Stranded in Suburbia. Paul Krugman pens this in today's New York Times about the difficulties Americans face with higher fuel prices:

And in the face of rising oil prices, which have left many Americans stranded in suburbia — utterly dependent on their cars, yet having a hard time affording gas — it’s starting to look as if Berlin had the better idea.

Changing the geography of American metropolitan areas will be hard. For one thing, houses last a lot longer than cars. Long after today’s S.U.V.’s have become antique collectors’ items, millions of people will still be living in subdivisions built when gas was $1.50 or less a gallon.

Infrastructure is another problem. Public transit, in particular, faces a chicken-and-egg problem: it’s hard to justify transit systems unless there’s sufficient population density, yet it’s hard to persuade people to live in denser neighborhoods unless they come with the advantage of transit access.

And there are, as always in America, the issues of race and class. Despite the gentrification that has taken place in some inner cities, and the plunge in national crime rates to levels not seen in decades, it will be hard to shake the longstanding American association of higher-density living with poverty and personal danger.

He makes many good points. Just because I can take transit to work, very few Americans have that option. Indeed, even I would not be able to take transit to work, if it weren't for the fact I have a carpool buddy to take me home when I have to stay late.

In America, we are largely dependent on cars. Millions and millions of them, driving trillions of miles each year, burning billions of gallons of gasoline. There's no escaping that fact, and it's difficult to do much to deal with high oil prices.

Read Stranded in Suburbia - New York Times. P'Link

New Yorkers hurt by rising gas prices, poll finds. From the article:

A majority of New Yorkers say the gasoline price spikes are having a very serious impact on their personal finances, a new poll out this morning reports.

The Siena College Research Institute poll found 57 percent say their family financial picture has taken a very serious hit, while another 29 percent say gasoline prices are having a somewhat serious impact. In all, 88 percent of upstate residents say the impact is very serious or somewhat serious.

And New Yorkers want their state gasoline taxes halted this summer, even though most believe the full, 32-cents-per-gallon amount of a suspension will not be passed along to consumers.

Read New Yorkers hurt by rising gas prices, poll finds in The Buffalo News. P'Link

Tired of Paying High Gas Prices? From the article:

Much is being made about the cost of driving today. Whether you drive to the store, to work or drive to get to your vacation spot; the question remains, what effect is driving having on you and others? Are there other options?

I bicycle year round- not just on weekends but nearly every day - to work. Yes, I'm one of those crazies bike commuting in January.

I'm often asked how I do it. How do I avoid being run over and clean up for my professional job? After responding, I always hear the same thing; Oh I could never make that work. Obviously not everybody can. Truck Drivers can't - but most people aren't truckers. Riding your bicycle is only one alternative to your personal car. There's the bus or carpooling or even walking. All of these require something very difficult - a change of mind.

Driving to work offers you with one thing, the ability to carry loads of baggage. That's great if you're going to the lumber yard but what about all of the baggage we don't realize we're carrying? The amount of money we have to earn to pay nearly $4 a gallon for gas, the pollution created by emissions and the manufacture of our vehicles. There's the road rage and stress, the loss of green-space to parking lots and expanding highways, the fat that hangs off our bodies; the list goes on and on.

Read Tired of Paying High Gas Prices? on the wamc NewsRoom. P'Link

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

Malta and It's Downtown. The Daily Gazette ran this editorial on Monday about the state's opposition to allowing on street parking in downtown to Malta.

The town of Malta, knowing that it’s going to be growing, wants to avoid the typical suburban sprawl as it does. Thus, for the last 10 years, it has been planning to create a traditional commercial downtown along Route 9. Last Wednesday it took about 10 minutes for Brian Rowback, the state Department of Transportation’s regional director, to put that plan in jeopardy, as he objected to a key component of it: on-street parking on Route 9.

Rowback gave the same reason highway engineers always do for widening and straightening roads, cutting down trees, flattening embankments, etc. safety. On-street parking has the “potential” for conflicts between parking cars, pedestrians and faster-moving traffic, he said. It appears that in the quest for perfect safety (or is it smooth-flowing traffic?), one can’t be too careful — even if it means living in a community that’s not very livable.

It's the state DOT's responsibility to oppose new development on it's state roads outside of municipal limits. That means no on-street parking, no new traffic lights or traffic control devices, unless it can be shown that they will lead to a dramatic reduction in the number of accidents.

We want state highways to be accessible to all state residents without unneccessary congestion or slow down. They are supposed to be in many ways like the two-lane versions of the interstates.

That said, the state has done a terrible job at opposing development along state highways and new induced traffic, while at the same time opposing traffic control devices. In doing that, they've promoted suburban sprawl without check.

If Malta proposed building a "Malta Bypass" that contained a four lane bypass with limited interruptions then it might make sense to turn Route 9 into a main street. Otherwise, there is already too many downtowns on major state highways like Route 9.

View Larger Map

Read Editorial: Don't deprive Malta of its 'downtown' in the Daily Gazette. P'Link

Money forthcoming for public transit. Maybe. From the article:

Last week, the House Transportation Committee passed the Saving Energy Through Public Transportation Act (HR 6052). At a time of record high gas prices – Hartford and Chicago are in the $4 gallon range with the national average not far behind – the bill would authorize $1.7 billion in grant funding for public transit.

The bill recognizes that some 37 million metric tones of carbon dioxide are saved annually by the 10.3 billion public transit trips Americans took in 2007. And, as a daily public transit rider myself, I appreciate the estimated annual cost-savings of $6,251 (as per the American Public Transportation Association).

The grant funding is broken out thusly: $750 million for fiscal years 2008 and 2009 for urbanized areas and $100 million for non-urbanized areas.

The grants could be used by public transit agencies to reduce fares and/or for capital improvements and expansion. At a time when so many transit agencies are facing drastic budget shortfalls, this bill is good news – should it pass and should the authorization be fully funded. Were the bill to pass, there is a good chance for full funding since the sponsor – Rep. James Oberstar – is the chair of the Transportation Committee and has a good relationship with Rep. James Olver, chair of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation.

Read Money forthcoming for public transit. Maybe. on Green Daily. P'Link

Wednesday, May 21, 2008

Thursday, May 22, 2008

Recalling the Ghost Bikes. Yesterday they had a mock funeral to recall all the deaths of bicyclists on the road.

Clouds loomed and rain fell intermittently Wednesday evening as 100 or so bicyclists gathered underneath I-787 by the Corning Preserve boat launch for the annual ride of silence.

They wore bright, visible clothing and black arm bands, in solidarity for bicyclists who have been injured or killed on Capital Region streets. From the boat launch, they proceeded south, pausing in front of a white-painted "ghost bike" to mark the spot where Jose Perez was killed in 2006. They then moved west, silently circling most of the city along Western and Central Avenues.

Honestly, I think they pay too much attention to bicycle accidents. People are killed all the time in horrific car crashes on the Northway and other roads—sometimes under the influence, sometimes just by bad judgment.

My fear of highlighting this will discourage people from riding bikes, despite the health benefits far outweighing any safety risk. People die in cars all the time, but they also don't get any exercise doing as such.

Read Cyclist tour recalls tragedies on the road in the Times Union. P'Link

Hitch Hiking to Work: A Way to Deal With $4 Gas. Apparently slugging, the euphemism for hitch-hiking is catching on in DC suburbs.

If you've ever sat in rush-hour traffic, gazing longingly at the cars rushing by in the high-occupancy vehicle lanes, try doing something your parents warned you never to do: Hop in a car with a complete stranger behind the wheel.

In a few cities, like Washington, D.C., formerly lone motorists can zip over into those HOV lanes thanks to a rare breed of commuter called a "slug." And with gas prices through the roof there's now an extra incentive to do it.

By 7 a.m., at a non-descript parking lot in suburban Virginia, the line of blue and grey business suits stretches down the sidewalk. Men and women stand quietly, patiently waiting their turn.

Read Slugging to Work: Anonymous Ride-Sharing on NPR. P'Link

Friday, May 23, 2008

Government Attitude Toward Gas Appalling?. That's what this LtE argues incorrectly in the Times Union today.

The price of gas is appalling, but what is even more appalling is the attitude of the government. The proposal to cap the tax on gasoline is obviously not in the state's best interest. The higher the price climbs, the more taxes they rake in and look at all that money the governor says the state would "lose" if they gave the consumers a break even for a few months.

That extra tax money should not have ever been counted on in the budget. If the price of oil per barrel suddenly drops, would the state then raise the tax per gallon to compensate? One has to wonder.

One of the arguments against the cap on gas tax is that the oil industry would raise the price to compensate, and this is bogus.

Why would the oil companies even care? After all, the tax money isn't going in their pocket. Do they really believe the public is that stupid?

No, don't count on a tax break from either the federal or state government anytime soon. They are gouging us just as much as Exxon Mobile whose prices are 7 to 10 cents higher per gallon than anyone else's and who are bragging about the billions it makes.

Except that the state does cap gas sales tax at $2 a gallon, and counties have the option of capping it at $2 or $3 a gallon if they want. Most don't do it as they have found there is little savings to consumers by doing it.

Read Government Attitude Toward Gas Appalling. in the Times Union. P'Link

Driving Down a Record Amount. It must be because I live in the city and don't drive my truck much. That and everybody else who can't afford to to drive.

In a sign that Americans are curbing their driving in the face of record-high gasoline prices, data released on Friday showed highway miles driven in March fell 4.3 percent from a year earlier, the first March decline since the last major oil shock in the late 1970s.

According to the Department of Transportation, Americans drove 11 billion miles less in March 2008 than a year earlier, the first time estimated travel on public roads fell in March since 1979.

The data marks the sharpest year-on-year drop for any month in the history of the agency's reporting, which dates back to 1942.

U.S. average gasoline prices hit $3.79 a gallon over the past week, up 57 cents from a year ago, according to U.S. data.

Record-high oil prices above $135 a barrel are pushing average pump prices closer to the crucial $4 a gallon level. Pump prices in seven U.S. states, including California, Illinois and New York, already average above $4 a gallon.

Read March driving down for 1st time since 1979: government on NPR. P'Link