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Saturday, June 30th

Up to 48 Percent of Travelers Will Use Public Transit When Visiting Top Cities
While most think of the local public transportation system as a way to get back and forth to work, many savvy travelers are using it as an environmentally-friendly and costeffective way to tour some of the hot destinations and summer events a city has to offer. In its Green Travel Forecast, the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) estimates that 90 million American adults will travel to large American cities this summer.

On average, one out of three people surveyed said they will tour green by using public transportation (34 percent). Travelers‟ use of public transportation will reach as high as 48 percent in New York City, the nation‟s top destination for transit use for visitors. A ranking of the top ten city destinations and their transit use among visitors follows:

New York City (48%)
Washington, DC (46%)
Boston, MA (43%)
San Francisco (40%)
Philadelphia (34%)
Chicago (31%)
Seattle (30%)
Las Vegas (26%)
Los Angeles (26%)
Atlanta (22%)

Cities are one of the top destinations for the Fourth of July holiday and during the summer months. This survey of 33,000 adults shows for the first time how travelers will get around once they arrive at their city destination. Synovate, a leading market research firm, conducted the survey for APTA. The survey also showed that travelers‟ use of public transportation will increase this summer. Twenty-eight percent of those who will use public transit while visiting a city said that they are more likely to use it this summer as opposed to last year.

While high gas prices are a factor for daily commuters, it did not rank as the top concern when travelers listed the most important reasons they would use public transportation during their trip to a city this summer. Sixty-two percent said it would be less expensive than taxicabs or rental cars, followed closely by 61 percent who say they won‟t have to worry about finding a parking space for their vehicle.

Another 48 percent say they will use public transportation when traveling because it is easier to use, while 42 percent like not having to drive around an unfamiliar city. Thirty-nine percent say public transportation is better for the environment and 38 percent said it will be less expensive than buying gas to drive their personal vehicle.

“This summer, many city tourists will be saying „no cab fare, no rental car, no problem!‟” said William W. Millar, president of APTA. “With almost 40 percent of travelers surveyed saying they will use transit this summer because of environmental concerns, tourists are discovering that getting around a city by public transportation can provide for a greener environment and can help them keep more green in their wallet.”

The environmental benefits of transit are many. Public transportation produces 95 percent less carbon monoxide (CO) and 90 percent less in volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and nearly 50 percent less carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrogen oxide (NOx), per passenger mile than private vehicles, according to APTA.

The cost savings for travelers using public transportation are high. A traveler can purchase a visitors pass for a local public transportation system and ride all day for as little as three to ten dollars. That is a fraction of what it would cost to rent a car and park it, or take numerous cab rides around the city, or buy gas and park a vehicle.

The most popular activity for those using public transportation while visiting a city is sightseeing (61 percent), followed by: restaurant dining and nightlife (46 percent), shopping (44 percent), travel to and from their place of lodging (41 percent), visiting a historical site (37 percent) and travel to and from the airport (37 percent).

Travelers who originate from large metropolitan areas are more likely to take advantage of a city‟s local public transportation system. Slightly over half (53 percent) of those traveling to a city and use transit on their trip are from large urban areas, while 23 percent are from medium-sized metro areas and 24 percent are from smaller cities and towns.

To assist travelers, APTA is providing its free “Green Travel Forecast, a Consumer’s Guide to Touring American Cities in a More Environmentally Friendly Way.” The guide includes specific information on day and visitor passes, trip planners, transit maps and directions. For the top 10 destinations with established transit systems it includes examples of upcoming city events accessible

Eric Miller (editor@newcolonist.com), on 06.30.07 @ 02:26PST

Friday, June 22nd

A New Take on Urban Farming
The BBC reports on an interesting variant of urban farming--skyscraper-greenhouses, powered by solar energy and biomass combustion, in center cities. Read their report on Vertical Farming in the Big Apple.

But why limit yourself to such specialized applications? There are thousands of acres of unused (or rarely-used) rooftop in most cities, that could (if the live-load limits of the roof structure permits) be used for urban farming, with the side benefit of providing habitat for birds and for work-weary humans. And they provide insulation for the building, reducing its energy use for both heating and cooling.

Green roofs have been in use for millenia; why do we keep forgetting what works to devote ourselves to cheap futilities?

Richard Risemberg (rrisemberg@newcolonist.com), on 06.22.07 @ 04:51PST

Wednesday, June 20th

China now no. 1 in CO2 emissions; USA in second position
According to the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency China’s 2006 CO2 emissions surpassed those of the USA by 8%. This includes CO2 emissions from industrial processes (cement production). With this, China tops the list of CO2 emitting countries for the first time. In 2005, CO2 emissions from China were still 2% below those of the USA. These figures are based on a preliminary estimate by the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (MNP), using recently published BP (British Petroleum) energy data and cement production data.

Eric Miller (editor@newcolonist.com), on 06.20.07 @ 04:51PST

Tuesday, June 19th

Ayn Rand on Oil and Saudi Arabia

Eric Miller (editor@newcolonist.com), on 06.19.07 @ 13:37PST

The New Colonist Releases Ten Commandments for Commuters
PITTSBURGH—In response to the Vatican’s ten commandments for drivers, The New Colonist issued Ten Commandments for Commuters. “We applaud the Vatican for encouraging drivers to be polite and sober,” said editor Eric Miller, “We just think they should be pointing out that driving isn’t really that good for us or society and isn’t the best way to get around.”

Here are the Ten Commandments for Commuters:

1. Thou Shall Not Pollute. Cars pollute. Automobiles are a major source of C02, which causes global warming. The EPA now has the authority to regulate the pollutant C02.

2. Thou Shall Not Kill: More than 40,000 people die in the United States each year from auto-related causes. Almost five thousand pedestrians are killed in collisions with autos.

3. Love Thy Neighbor. This includes communing with thy neighbor on public transportation, sidewalks, parks, etc. Avoiding thy neighbor by staying in a car with the radio blasting is cheating.

4. Thou shall learn of others means of travel. Driving is not the only means of transit.

5. Love Thyself. This includes exercising which comes quite naturally when you leave your car at home or sell it.

6. Thou shall not covet thy neighbor’s car. Automobiles have become a status symbol and too many see buying them as a way to define personality. Automobiles don’t define us, and they all do the same thing with varying degrees of efficiency. If you need a car, define yourself as conscientious and choose an efficient model.

7. Thou shall consider not only how far and how we travel, but how far products travel to get to us. Choose locally-grown products and locally manufactured products when possible.

8. Thou shall not covet thy neighbor’s shoes. More thou should choose shoes manufactured by paying a fair wage.

9. Thou shall be considerate of pedestrians and bicyclists when necessity requires that we drive.

10. Thou shall consider where we have to travel before we choose a place to live. Where we live primarily determines if we need to drive and how much we need to drive.

Eric Miller (editor@newcolonist.com), on 06.19.07 @ 12:12PST

Amtrak Partners with GrandLuxe to Offer Luxury Rail Service
Beginning this fall, passengers traveling on select Amtrak routes will have the option of lingering over five-course dinners, sleeping in luxurious suites and enjoying personal butler service. The premium service is being made possible by a new partnership between GrandLuxe Rail Journeys, the country's premier, private rail tour operator, and Amtrak, the national passenger rail service.

This is the first time in history that luxury accommodations have been offered on multiple Amtrak routes throughout the country.

Called GrandLuxe Limited, the new service uses a separate, private, seven-car luxury train attached to several regularly scheduled Amtrak trains. The GrandLuxe train, which features Dining, Lounge and Sleeping cars appointed with elegant vintage furnishings, will be occupied exclusively by GrandLuxe Limited passengers.

With over 90 departures starting in November and continuing through the holiday season into January 2008, GrandLuxe Limited will be available on three major Amtrak routes:

Between Chicago and the San Francisco Bay Area, three days and two nights on the Amtrak California Zephyr; Between Los Angeles and Chicago, three days and two nights on the Amtrak Southwest Chief; and Between Washington, D.C. and Miami, two days and one night on the Amtrak Silver Meteor.

Eight additional two-day, one-night departures will be offered on four special itineraries: Between Washington, D.C. and Chicago on the Amtrak Capitol Limited; Denver to the San Francisco Bay Area on the Amtrak California Zephyr; Denver to Chicago on the Amtrak California Zephyr; and Chicago to Albuquerque on the Amtrak Southwest Chief.

The unprecedented collaboration between Amtrak and GrandLuxe is an effort to increase ridership and introduce a new market to luxury train travel. GrandLuxe Limited offers two- and three-day itineraries at more affordable prices than traditional GrandLuxe tours, which cover broader itineraries of seven to 10 days.

The partnership between Amtrak and GrandLuxe is in keeping with Amtrak's strategic initiative to explore ways to expand its business reach and find creative ways to increase revenues through innovative partnerships with the private sector. The arrangement provides revenue for both companies in the partnership.

Prices for GrandLuxe Limited range from $789 to $2,499 per person.

Eric Miller (editor@newcolonist.com), on 06.19.07 @ 11:20PST

Seeking Regular Blog Contributors
We're seeking a few more regular blog contributors to occasionally post about city life topics. If you're interested in having an audience here, send an email with a short writing sample and tell us why you'd like to contribute. newcolonist@newcolonist.com

Eric Miller (editor@newcolonist.com), on 06.19.07 @ 10:17PST

Monday, June 18th

The Battle Against Sidewalks
Yes, there is sadly a battle or two against sidewalks...
USA Today article

Eric Miller (editor@newcolonist.com), on 06.18.07 @ 06:53PST

Saturday, June 16th

Main Streets: Cambridge, Ohio
A Saturday drive took us from Pittsburgh to the outskirts of Zanesville, Ohio to visit some antique and pottery stores. On the way back 40 took us into the town of Cambridge, population 13,000. Wheeling Street in Cambridge was quite a treat. The street is framed by exceptional architecture including a Victorian Courthouse. A block behind the street and you come upon some attractive and well-kept brick residential buildings. The best thing was the businesses on Wheeling Street. After eating at a value-priced home-cooking diner, a co-op art gallery caught our eye. The volunteers inside were quite friendly and said the town was trying to promote tourism (maybe they should keep their secret!). It would seem to be a well-kept secret at that--and one I''ll try my best to blow. After a couple antique stores, we then wandered in to one of the largest coffee shops I've ever seen and a small bookstore packed with bargains including a really reasonably priced first edition of Truman Capote's "In Cold Blood." There was a National Road Heritage Center which we didn't get to on time and even a community theater. The place seems filled with artists and I can't imagine the housing costs are very high. Its certainly a nice town to visit--hell, I'd trade the array of stores on Wheeling Street for East Ohio Street (the commercial street nearest my house) any day. And if you stay on Wheeling Street and head into Wheeling, that's a real geographic and architectural treat. MORE ABOUT CAMBRIDGE

Eric Miller (editor@newcolonist.com), on 06.16.07 @ 17:32PST

Monday, June 11th

I’On Group to Break Ground on New Park Circle Neighborhood
I’On Group will break ground on Mixson, a traditional walkable neighborhood in the Park Circle area of North Charleston, S.C., June 13. Vince Graham, founder of I’On Group, and North Charleston Mayor R. Keith Summey will lead the ground breaking beginning at 4:30 p.m. on Mixson Avenue between East Montague and Durant Avenue.

Mixson’s streets will be characterized by tree-lined walks leading to intimate parks and plazas. Public gathering places will complement private residences and provide neighbors the opportunity to engage in a healthy civic life. Mixson will be a diverse, walking neighborhood with plans for residences in a variety of forms, including single-family detached homes, rowhouses, multi-unit homes and live-work flats. I’On Group will complete 29 one- to three-bedroom residences by next spring with prices starting in the mid one-hundreds.

Mixson will feature high-quality construction by I’On Build, the construction division of I’On Group. I’On Build will use durable and healthful building materials, utilizing the latest green building techniques. “From the outset, our goal has been to expand the construction quality of the homes in the much celebrated I’On neighborhood of Mt. Pleasant,” says Graham. “We want Mixson to be a beautiful, accessible extension of the vibrant, historic neighborhoods that surround us.”

For more information, please visit the Mixson Web site at www.mixsonavenue.com.

Eric Miller (editor@newcolonist.com), on 06.11.07 @ 09:39PST

Wednesday, June 6th

GREEN LA – AN ACTION PLAN TO LEAD THE NATION IN FIGHTING GLOBAL WARMING
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, in partnership with the Los Angeles City Council and environmental leaders, recently unveiled GREEN LA – An Action Plan to Lead the Nation in Fighting Global Warming.

GREEN LA promises to reduce the City of Los Angeles’ greenhouse gas emissions by 35% below 1990 levels by 2030. 35% by 2030 goes beyond the targets set in the Kyoto Protocol and is greatest reduction target of any large US city. The cornerstone of GREEN LA is increasing the City’s use of renewable energy to 35% by 2020.

GREEN LA has over 50 initiatives that will reduce the City’s carbon footprint.

Eric Miller (editor@newcolonist.com), on 06.06.07 @ 14:52PST

Brown Calls Upon U.S. EPA to Resist Global Warming Stall Tactic
Calling global warming a profound threat to our nation's long-term security, Attorney General Edmund G. Brown Jr. urged the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to resist President Bush's "dangerous strategy for endless stonewalling" and permit California and 11 other states to curb vehicle greenhouse gas emissions.

Wednesday's U.S. EPA hearing in Sacramento marks the second and last public hearing on landmark regulations requiring automakers to reduce vehicle greenhouse gas emissions 30 percent by 2016. California and the states need the U.S. EPA's permission to implement the rules, which California first adopted in 2002.

Under the Clean Air Act, California can adopt standards stricter than federal rules by requesting a waiver from EPA. Approval of Californiaâ s waiver means the other states would get approval automatically. Congress expressly allowed California to impose stricter environmental regulations in recognition of the state's "compelling and extraordinary conditions," including topography, climate, high number and concentration of vehicles and its pioneering role in vehicle emissions regulation.

The 11 other states are Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington.

The Bush administration has long opposed any targets aimed at reducing greenhouse gases and is expected to oppose a consensus greenhouse gas reduction proposal at next week's G-8 summit which brings together the leaders of German, the United States, Russia, Britain, France, Italy, Canada and Japan.

President Bush, during an impromptu May 14 press conference in the Rose Garden, directed four federal agencies to spend the next 18 months discussing climate change. "This Rose Garden proposal was nothing more than a stall tactic and a dangerous strategy for endless stonewalling," Brown said. Bush's comments in the Rose Garden were made on the same day that Justice Department lawyers were in a San Francisco federal courtroom fighting charges that the Bush administration adopted legally insufficient fuel efficiency standard for SUVs, pickups and minivans.

Scientific evidence continues to buttress California's claim for a waiver under the Clean Air Act. Last week, the National Academy of Sciences reported a sharp increase in the rate of man-made carbon dioxide. The rate of increase is much greater than previously estimated by the United Nation's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

The harm from global warming includes rising sea levels, eroding beaches, increasing drought and damage to California's system of levees. Brown noted that California is particularly vulnerable to the effects of global warming because of its 1,000 mile coastline.

Eric Miller (editor@newcolonist.com), on 06.06.07 @ 08:36PST

Monday, June 4th

Coal & Global Warming
From the Seattle Times comes an article about the astounding pollution loads generated by coal-fired power plants, and an interesting comparison of greenhouse gas emissions from different states. Among the more itneresting notes:

• Wyoming's coal-fired power plants produce more carbon dioxide in just eight hours than the power generators of more populous Vermont do in a year.
• Texas, the leader in emitting this greenhouse gas, cranks out more than the next two biggest producers combined, California and Pennsylvania, which together have twice Texas' population.
• In sparsely populated Alaska, the carbon dioxide produced per person by all the flying and driving is six times the per-capita amount generated by travelers in New York state.

And in relation to transport habits:

Emissions from generating electricity account for the largest chunk of U.S. greenhouse gases, nearly 40 percent. Transportation emissions are close behind, contributing about one-third of U.S. production of carbon dioxide. States with mass transit and cities, such as New York, come out cleaner than those with wide expanses that rely solely on cars, trucks and airplanes, such as Alaska.

Read the entire article here: Carbon-emissions Culprit? Coal

Richard Risemberg (rrisemberg@newcolonist.com), on 06.04.07 @ 10:58PST

Worried about your carbon Footprint? Is Moving the Answer?
States that burn coal for power including Wyoming, Texas and Pennsylvania rank high in the amount of CO2 they contribute to the atmosphere. That's according to a state-by-state analysis by the U.S. Energy Department. Wyoming and Texas were by far the largest polluters, with Pennsylvania and California tied for a distant third place.

The problem isn't only coal however. The vaste expance that is Alaska contributes greatly (on a per person basis) due to a great degree of travel by car and air. Alaska is likely to be one of the states most affected by flooding caused by global warming. Another place you might never think of as a heavy polluter, North Dakota contributes 68 percent more carbon dioxide than New Jersey, which has 13 times North Dakota's residents.

If you want to limit your carbon footprint, living in a city and driving less is important, but moving to a cleaner-burning state (one professor quoted had moved from Wyoming to Washington to reduce his footprint) can result in a large and immediate reduction. That's may be somewhat simplistic, however given that Wyoming is one of the largest energy exporters to other states. If you live in a high-CO2 contributor state, drive less, live small and write your legislators about limiting emissions or adopting alternative, clean-burning energy sources.

Eric Miller (editor@newcolonist.com), on 06.04.07 @ 03:53PST

Saturday, June 2nd

Car-Free Town a Hit in Germany
Yes, in a heavily industrialized nation even wealthier than the US, people, politicians, and planners are actually making sense! Vauban, a suburb (yes) of Freiburg, was designed as a car-free development with the space typically dedicated to cars given to community and greenery. The upscale residents love it:

"Schools, kindergartens, a farmer's market, a shopping center, a good store which sells organic products only, and a recreation area -- you name it, it's all in walking or cycling distance," resident Sabine Burgermeister said. "And it's a much better quality of life here than it is in downtown Freiburg. And if we need to go there, there's always the option to take the tramway."

The free tramway passes generously provided by the city of Freiburg are helping residents of Vauban to become less car-dependent....

Read the rest of the story at, of all places, ABC News.

Richard Risemberg (rrisemberg@newcolonist.com), on 06.02.07 @ 06:18PST

Friday, June 1st

Caught in the Headlights
High Plains Films just released an announcement of a screening of "Caught in the Headlights," a documentary examining auto/wildlife conlifcts nationwide.

Of course, these conflicts are nearly always fatal to the animal, resulting in the deaths of over one million animals each year. According to plupmovies.com, "'Caught in the Headlights' [is] beautifully shot...Caught in the Headlights is an understated and intelligent documentary which has much to say about car culture that is applicable not only to North America, but to any developed country."

The screening will be on Montana TV, but you can order the film directly from High Plains at highplainsfilms.org

And let's not forget the human toll of driving: 47,000 deaths directly from car crashes alone per year, in the US alone. Fifteen 9/11 attacks per year, for the sake of hurry and prestige....

Richard Risemberg (rrisemberg@newcolonist.com), on 06.01.07 @ 16:25PST