tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-322465932024-03-14T02:24:06.303-07:00Car(bon)free in CaliforniaMusings of a life without a car in California, well at least San Francisco Bay Area/Silicon Valley. Full of tips, observations and impact of automobiles on our lives.
Check out the links to the right for resources and tips for reducing car usage. Get Active! Start Moving on your own energy! You can contact me at carfreeincalifornia@mac.comCharleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18093468302256896004noreply@blogger.comBlogger730125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32246593.post-68286711797271141702023-11-26T22:40:00.000-08:002023-11-26T22:40:01.147-08:00What will come out of COP this time?<p> Comments are open. </p>Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18093468302256896004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32246593.post-7476969646906633682021-11-02T18:23:00.001-07:002021-11-02T18:23:19.958-07:00Traffic Deaths Outpace Passenger Mile GrowthThings are increasingly coming back to "normal" and that includes the increase in driving by individuals. As more and more people get vaccinated and restrictions are removed, people are eager to get out on the roads. Sadly what is also increasing even faster is road deaths as tracked by National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and covered in this Ars Technica <a href="https://arstechnica.com/cars/2021/11/traffic-deaths-climb-higher-than-miles-traveled-in-2021-nhtsa-finds/">piece</a>. Secretary Buttigieg described it in the following way:<div><br /></div><div><blockquote>"This is a crisis. More than 20,000 people died on U.S. roads in the first six months of 2021, leaving countless loved ones behind. We cannot and should not accept these fatalities as simply a part of everyday life in America," said United States Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. "Today we are announcing that we will produce the Department’s first ever National Roadway Safety Strategy to identify action steps for everyone working to save lives on the road.</blockquote><div>The attitudes to vaccines and to traffic deaths are very similar in that they both center around personal freedom. It appears that we have become inured to death in everyday life and that perhaps is why it's so hard to make changes to our infrastructure if not our attitudes toward our transportation system. The question is would our indifference seep into other things. Aviation is amazing in that we have a zero tolerance for preventable incidences. Is it because it's professionalized? Or is it because the cost of the equipment is so high, it focuses those in power to protect the assets of business if not the people of business. </div><div><br /></div><div>Our return to normal should not mean an acceptance of a higher car death rate, but for some reason I think it will. </div><p> </p></div>Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18093468302256896004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32246593.post-55763181359568371292021-10-27T18:22:00.002-07:002021-10-27T18:22:43.064-07:00What does the attention we give to automobile deaths say about us?<p> I had saved an article to share that asked this exact question. One of the things that is amazing is that we normalize death as long as it comes in the form of a car accident. It is normal, we read about it all the time, yet for some reason it doesn't phase us. </p><p>What's even more disturbing is the increase in deaths by pedestrians which is growing, of which is highlighted in this <a href="https://magazine.northeast.aaa.com/daily/life/cars-trucks/pedestrian-deaths-on-the-rise/">article</a> by a AAA chapter. </p><p>Given our current climate predicament, what people should be doing more of (walking and biking), is increasingly dangerous. A conundrum indeed. </p>Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18093468302256896004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32246593.post-13287235609966170832021-10-18T11:13:00.002-07:002021-10-18T11:13:09.180-07:00eBikes taking off on the Peninsula<p>Nice <a href="https://www.smdailyjournal.com/news/local/e-bikes-pedal-onto-peninsula/article_22a2167e-2fe8-11ec-a948-f727ae908c67.html">write up</a> in the San Mateo Daily News about the increasing popularity of eBikes and some of the incentives for low income individuals to get subsidies for eBikes. </p><p>There is also some legislation going on at the Federal level to provide incentives for eBikes similar to electric cars known as the <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-bill/1019/text">E-BIKE Act</a>, is also making its way through Congress. The proposed legislation would extend a 30% tax credit for electric bicycle purchases.</p><p>Given the weather in California, it makes sense for more bike riding. We just need to work on that bike parking issue.</p>Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18093468302256896004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32246593.post-72014457422641252182021-10-18T11:06:00.001-07:002021-10-18T11:06:23.227-07:00The bells start to toll for ride share<p>Today's New York Times has an <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/17/opinion/uber-lyft.html" target="_blank">editorial</a> on the challenges that ride sharing are confronting and all the supposed benefits that were suppose to accrue. Well as more data comes in, the old adage that the more things change, the more they stay the same. The net net is transportation, ehmmm cough cough, I mean mobility, is incredibly hard to provide. One of the presumed benefits was to reduce pollution, and by extension greenhouse gases, but sadly that is not the case. </p><p><span style="font-size: x-small;"></span></p><blockquote><p><span>N<span face="nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif" style="caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #333333;">ow a</span><span face="nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif" style="caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #333333;"> </span><a class="css-1g7m0tk" href="https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.est.1c01641" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="border: 0px; caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #326891; font-family: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-color: rgb(50, 104, 145); text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-style: solid; text-decoration-thickness: 1px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank" title="">new study</a><span face="nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif" style="caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #333333;"> </span><span face="nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif" style="caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #333333;">is punching a hole in another of Uber and Lyft’s promised benefits: curtailing pollution. The companies have long insisted their services are a boon to the environment in part because they reduce the need for short trips, can pool riders heading in roughly the same direction and cut unnecessary miles by, for instance, eliminating the need to look for street parking.</span></span></p><span face="nyt-imperial, georgia, times new roman, times, serif" style="color: #333333;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51);">It turns out that Uber rides do spare the air from the high amount of pollutants emitted from starting up a cold vehicle, when it is operating less efficiently, researchers from Carnegie Mellon University found. But that gain is wiped out by the need for drivers to circle around waiting for or fetching their next passenger, known as deadheading. Deadheading, Lyft and Uber estimated in 2019, is equal to about 40 percent of rideshare miles driven in six American cities. The researchers at Carnegie Mellon estimated that driving without a passenger leads to a roughly 20 percent overall increase in fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions compared to trips made by personal vehicles.</span></span><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #333333; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"></p></blockquote><p>On demand is incredibly difficult, and the more that moves to on demand, the costs of providing that convenience occurs somewhere, either explicitly or implicitly. And those costs may not be strictly in the form of emissions, but time. One thing is that Uber took off because it made people feel like "ballers" with on demand services reserved for the rich. However, in places where there is high density, everyone acting like that, you end up with deadlock and an increase in emissions and loss of time. This is illustrated in this Tweet and this response from the wealthy (or at least aspiring wealthy) who know that sometimes shared transit is faster as illustrated by this response:</p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #333333; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"></span></p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">From midtown to jfk you take the E and then the air train. 7 bucks and takes about an hour. No traffic delays. Literally everyone who’s ever worked at Carlyle BlackRock Blackstone McKinsey knows that trick and uses the 53 and Madison entrance.</p>— Alex Song (@alexsongis) <a href="https://twitter.com/alexsongis/status/1397688949473222657?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 26, 2021</a></blockquote><p>Efficiency comes from shared capacity. </p> <script async="" charset="utf-8" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>
Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18093468302256896004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32246593.post-39583606608478186602021-10-16T17:46:00.001-07:002021-10-16T17:46:18.450-07:00The cost of free returns in online shopping.<p>This is a fascinating <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2021/11/free-returns-online-shopping/620169/" target="_blank">article</a> on what happens to all those online returns, and it isn't pretty. The benefit of modern life is that we can operate at scale, which leads to efficiencies and hence lower costs. Most of what we do to get goods into our hands has been optimized to be more efficient. And we can see this trend coming back as a result of the pandemic, as restaurants streamline their menus to make things more efficient. In engineering we have a saying, "make the common case fast". Well returns, are not the common case, and they are not optimized in any meaningful way.</p><p>So this has a cost in almost every way, cost to make the goods, cost to ship the goods, cost to dispose the goods. And all those costs include environmental and carbon cost. </p><p>Convenience is the bogeyman of our modern age, and it's leading us to an unsustainable path. However, convenience is like crack, super addictive. Can we break the habit, or just cut back a little?</p>Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18093468302256896004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32246593.post-11053708054864998802021-10-15T12:08:00.003-07:002021-10-15T12:08:50.747-07:00So what will it take for your neighbor down the street to change?<p>If you are reading this blog, if you read this blog, yeah, I admit it has been a long time since I've posted, but I digress. If you are a reader of this blog, you are probably concerned about the impact of CO2 emissions on the planet's climate and worried about the subsequent impact on us as a species. Maybe you've dealt with killer storms or are still cutting your air with a knife in the fall. You say, enough already, climate change is real, and the data and the models suggest that it's a direct result of our voluminous combustion to feed our needs. Note combustion is not limited to fossil fuels, we are burning a heck of a lot of jungle for burgers and agriculture. So you have taken the plunge, and maybe gone electric. That shiny Tesla is pretty hot, and it's a brilliant move to be a no apologies green car. You get the gal, and you get green street cred. If you are really cool, maybe you've started walking to your coffee shop a few blocks away, or picked up a new ride of a bicycle. </p><p>So the question, is not what is it going to change your mind and actions to reduce your carbon generation. The question of course, is how do you change your neighbor? What needs to happen in your mind to compel action to be reduce one's carbon footprint. </p><p>It's a question that I wrestle with, since being here in a supposedly enlightened area, I still see people using their cars for short trips. The differential in time to go to the local Philz is maybe 2 minutes by bike, and 7 minutes walking. And that's before you factor in parking. But I still see people turning on the ignition. </p><p>Is self locomotion too hard? Too sweaty? Too uncool? Too inconvenient? Too limiting? What stops people from taking an alternative that while takes a few more minutes, is healthier for both the person and the environment? </p><p>In California, will eBikes with mini-Trunks take off if offered, or will they be like so many pieces of exercise equipment collecting dust? What is going on people's minds, not what they say, but what will actually move them to change? That is the question we need to ask!</p>Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18093468302256896004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32246593.post-80451982193388314432020-11-18T10:07:00.002-08:002020-11-18T10:07:27.909-08:00Are cars returning?<p>Based on the traffic data, yes, cars are returning to the road. And they are returning in new ways, which are the old ways. People are living farther apart and require cars for basic tasks. Concerns about isolation will persist and many will insist on private transportation instead of mass transit. </p><p>So what does this mean? </p><p>For climate change and carbon consumption, perhaps this will bring new electrics on to the road. Rise of solar to power those cars may also change the mix of vehicles. Working from home removes one of the primary reasons for commuting, so perhaps that will offset the increased distance. What we forget is for many work is a social endeavor as much as a functional one. So I do see a return to road congestion. </p><p>So will things be the same or will they be different. Hard to tell and too soon to tell. But I do know this is human nature is pretty locked in. In the absence of fear people choose easy and what easy is will make the difference for us collectively. </p>Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18093468302256896004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32246593.post-40021203391874892752020-06-22T16:31:00.001-07:002020-06-22T16:31:34.089-07:00Pandemic bike ridingHello there!<br />
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It's been awhile since I've posted on this site, and I was surprised to find out that it is still alive and somewhat well. A lot has happened since I posted that most people know about, so I'll skip the recap.<br />
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One pleasant benefit of the pandemic has been the increase in bicycle riding to get around and stay fit. A side benefit is that if done right, it's a way to socialize in a socially distant way. So now is a great time to get out and enjoy.<br />
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While the car may seem like a safe bubble, the alternative may be equally healthy.<br />
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Be safe, be healthy!Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18093468302256896004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32246593.post-77236950164371229012015-07-09T14:10:00.002-07:002015-07-09T14:10:50.308-07:00Fewer roads in our future.The Iowa IOT Chief <a href="http://www.citylab.com/commute/2015/07/iowa-makes-a-bold-admission-we-need-fewer-roads/398021/">publicly shares</a> the concern that maintenance of more roads is not feasible so it might be best to let roads disappear. I'll let the article speak for itself but this summarizes it effectively<br />
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Per capita driving has peaked in America, and with that <a href="http://www.citylab.com/commute/2015/03/driving-in-america-is-approaching-a-new-normal/388421/" style="color: #0ab8eb;">new normal</a> comes the question of <a href="http://www.citylab.com/commute/2014/02/were-driving-less-so-should-we-stop-building-new-roads/8507/" style="color: #0ab8eb;">whether or not</a> we should be spending limited transportation funding on building new roads. If nothing else the driving trends support the wisdom of a “fix-it-first” policy that focuses on highway <a href="http://www.citylab.com/cityfixer/2015/02/americas-infrastructure-crisis-is-really-a-maintenance-crisis/385452/" style="color: #0ab8eb;">maintenance over expansion</a>.</div>
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Iowa DOT chief Paul Trombino recently took that logical conclusion one step further. During an Urban Land Institute talk, Trombino told the audience he expects the state’s overbuilt and unsustainable road network to “shrink,” <a href="http://www.strongtowns.org/journal/2015/7/6/iowa-dot-chief-the-system-is-going-to-shrink" style="color: #0ab8eb;">according to</a> Charles Marohn of <em>Strong Towns</em>. Iowans should figure out which roads “we really want to keep” and let the others “deteriorate and go away.”</div>
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Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18093468302256896004noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32246593.post-11142640976735876262014-07-09T08:31:00.001-07:002014-07-09T08:31:50.464-07:00A day in the life of Caltrain. <div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'>This is a piece about new Caltrain board member experiencing first hand the trials and tribulations of the Caltrain system. Has details about the upcoming electrification and additional cars planned.
http://peninsulamoves.wordpress.com/2014/07/08/new-director-gets-first-hand-account-of-day-to-day-operations-and-challenges-facing-caltrain/
</div> Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18093468302256896004noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32246593.post-72562426719750632292013-10-28T18:29:00.001-07:002013-10-28T18:29:38.232-07:00The cost of cars <p dir=ltr>The New York Times has a personal <a href="http://nyti.ms/16fHiIS">piece</a> on the cost of cars on out health. Its nothing new but explores how our lives have been hijacked by cars. I know thay my time im Taipei has shown that a life in motion feels healthier. </p>
<p dir=ltr>It resonates with me. How about you?<br><br></p>
Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18093468302256896004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32246593.post-62952671841517707382013-10-23T08:33:00.001-07:002013-10-23T08:33:31.937-07:00Now this is cool! Battery assisted bikes for all <p dir=ltr>The New York Times reports on a cool innovation that will make bicycling more accessible within cities. This wheel makes a standard bicycle a battery assisted the story is in share graph below. Apologize for the wonky post but Android is being funky again. </p>
<p dir=ltr>NYTimes: Start-Up Reinvents the Bicycle Wheel http://nyti.ms/1a9CFRN</p>
<p dir=ltr>I have to admit the internal hubs of citibike and Bay Area Bike Share are working great too. <br></p>
Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18093468302256896004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32246593.post-67486129091279525562013-10-11T16:03:00.002-07:002013-10-11T16:03:21.979-07:00SFPD has a twitter account for bike theftsJust found out the SFPD has created a Twitter account for bike thefts. <a href="https://twitter.com/sfpdbiketheft">https://twitter.com/sfpdbiketheft</a> Follow for news and to report.<div>
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your PSA for the day!</div>
Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18093468302256896004noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32246593.post-16986839539878049822013-10-02T08:47:00.001-07:002013-10-02T08:47:41.700-07:00Further thoughts on Bay Area Bike ShareWell it has been a month and I am looking forward to statistics on the success of Bay Area Bike Share and it looks like they are working the kinks out. Bikes are being relocated regularly so in most cases it is possible to get and return a bike in most cases. Oddly it seems more challenging to find a slot to return a bike than get a bike with the Fourth and King station being particularly problematic. This illustrates the demand for mass transit interchange options. <div><br></div><div>For me coming in from the South Bay I have to figure out how to get to 9th and Market. Thankfully I have a few options. A private building run shuttle, the 83x and now bike share. This combination solves a key problem which is availability. Given Caltrain's current erratic performance (which to be fair is not always their fault, the sad state where people are unable to get help is an issue we all have culpability on), it is not always clear that I will have a ride where the wait time can be upwards of 30 minutes. Bike share brings the advantages of taxis in that a ride is immediately available. The mixed modes of transportation options suggests that Bike Share would benefit from joining the clipper system to enable more riders a quick way of getting on their ride. But the option of immediate transport I think has driven the success. Mass transit could fill the gap but they cannot provide the options of random destination. </div><div><br></div><div>Which brings me to wonder if the issue of availability and flexibility of destination is the key to car share. The closest I have seen to CitiBike or BABS is Car2Go which has smart cars that don't require round trips. A part of Daimler I am curious to how it is doing. Sadly it looks like San Francisco will not permit this <span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 15px; line-height: 19px; white-space: nowrap; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.292969); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); ">http://venturebeat.com/2013/07/15/san-francisco-is-blocking-the-most-innovative-transportation-company/</span></div><div><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 15px; line-height: 19px; white-space: nowrap; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.292969); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); "><br></span></div><div><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 15px; line-height: 19px; white-space: nowrap; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.292969); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); ">Anyone from a Car2go city care to share their experience? </span></div><div><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 15px; line-height: 19px; white-space: nowrap; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.292969); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); "><br></span></div><div><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 15px; line-height: 19px; white-space: nowrap; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.292969); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); ">Dynamic routing off of arterial pathways works for bikes can it work for cars. Zipcar is great for your home but its not how people live. </span></div>Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18093468302256896004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32246593.post-16706460728971983982013-09-15T20:39:00.001-07:002013-09-15T20:39:32.396-07:00Thoughts on Bay Area Bike ShareIt's no secret that I am a member of the Bay Area Bike Share and I even have the t-shirt to prove it. I was out of town during the opening but after Labor Day I have had quite a few opportunities to give it a try and so far the verdict is hopeful. There are a lot of kinks to work out and San Francisco does not have a leader of the stature of JSK to s Whay ape the landscape to make the city more bike friendly. So despite its similarities it doesn't match up to CitiBike but let's focus on the bike share program we have not the one we wish we had.<br />
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The Bikes.<br />
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First off, the bikes are fantastic and easy to use. Their clunkiness is almost a point of pride in the hipsteris locked inaticism of San Francisco. They arEncnot quite as iconic as CitiBike. But the Bianchi like green and the distinct frame make them stand up. I like the strapped rack in front and the enclosed chain guard means any one can hop on without fear for their pant legs.<br />
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The practicality of the design is solid. While the routes I have been taking have been mostly flat (Caltrain to various parts of Market St and back) the shifting has been responsive and easy to use. we'll see how the shifters last a year from now. If CitiBike can survive I am sure BABS will too. I am not sure if the gearing will be sufficient for some of the hills here. That combined with the weight will be a natural corral for most riders. </div>
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Less gratifying for the bikes has been the quick release seat posts. A lot of people aren't familiar with the lever mechanism of a quick release and occasionally the mechanisms are too loose. A ratchet system may be more robust. I had a few times where the seat started to slip. </div>
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Riding the BABS bikes is very reminiscent of riding a bike in Amsterdam or Beijing, freeing and casual. I haven't ridden Bicci in Barcelona or Toronto but my sense is that these bikes are more robust. A rear rack might give more freedom and utility for errand takers. </div>
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This is probably the most confusing part of the experience. When I started I had a lot of confusion about how to activate and get my bike. I inserted my key and nothing happened. So I would put it into another bike rack and nothing happened. Then I thought I had to activate with the kiosk. And then it would work. That actually was just a coincidence. What the key system is slow in comparison to our modern age. You learn the cryptic yellow light to green light dance that means you can grab your bike. It still seems a little iffy on any rack that you will be able to pick up your bike and go. The return is just as dicey. At $1200 a pop you want to make sure the bad boy is locked back in. It too has a weird "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" kind of light dance. It is just missing the soundtrack. Once you figure it out its not top hard but befuddling at the beginning. The website is overly genericor the page map just bites. The racks serve their function but pay attention in the return. The videos of. Bikes not "returned" on YouTube are not for the faint of wallet. </div>
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The System </div>
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If you are in San Francisco and downtown I am going to declare BABS a qualified success. 90% of the time I am able to find a bike or be able to return a bike. Note that there needs to be bikes and free racks to the end to end nature to work. Commuting endpoints like 4th and King have brought disappointment at tines but I think this will get better as they figure out the load and flow of riders. It is a backup to muni or vice versa. The cost of the system works out if you are already a mass transit rider. At $88/year if you substitute 4 muni rides you are net even, any rides beyond that is gravy and for short rides you are faster than Muni in many cases with the trade off a little literal sweat.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbjrZbSiyx0H49PNuoB8nDu4ynwUtC74hGHtsph3BFMsN0iIatyD6KY94PMDN2YrVPvI7jOsVFZZt3G3y6bfukwKAjweSeR5SQCqhz-7tyRtDg73tAp8CutUi4rLuthS45meMw1w/s1600/DSC_0024.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbjrZbSiyx0H49PNuoB8nDu4ynwUtC74hGHtsph3BFMsN0iIatyD6KY94PMDN2YrVPvI7jOsVFZZt3G3y6bfukwKAjweSeR5SQCqhz-7tyRtDg73tAp8CutUi4rLuthS45meMw1w/s320/DSC_0024.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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The City</div>
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This will be the big challenge of Bay Area Bike Share is that San Francisco is a notoriously difficult city for commuters, but it's terrifying for novices. San Francisco is a cacophony of different transport methods and they seem to mix in their own random ways. There are not clear rights of ways and we are a city lost in our own distractions. Most of the accidents have been distraction related to our little masters the mobile phone. There are some protected arteries such as Market, but even then they share the road with cars and buses in unpredictable ways. It will take a lot more cyclists to establish a normal experience on the roads for people to co-exist.<br />
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Conclusions<br />
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I am really excited by how well BABS has been working out, it's done a good job with some tough constraints. With more bikes and more stations, I think BABS can be a great complement to Muni. I wonder for some of the hillier places if bike style ski lifts could be a solution to help novices and less fit people power these up the hills. One can always dream. But if you are a regular Muni or Bart rider, the $88 breaks even after 5 rides per month. </div>
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Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18093468302256896004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32246593.post-27182461123943900582013-07-02T22:47:00.001-07:002013-07-02T22:47:19.864-07:00Peak Driving and the Need for better infrastructureThe New York Times has a <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/30/sunday-review/the-end-of-car-culture.html?smid=pl-share">piece</a> on the decline of driving by recent generations and what does that matter for the economy. It gives some hypotheses as to why driving has taken such a decline. One is indirectly alluded to is that people now can use mobile devices and can feel more connected. I think that is partially true. One has to think about what the car use to mean in the past, and that was freedom, freedom from boredom. If you were bored at home, and given the lack of TV channels and the internet, the car was an escape from your own thoughts. However, today the car is boredom given the huge amounts of traffic that one has to deal with. We are a more populous place, and in our city centers our population has outpaced the number of roads to support them. So driving is now the boredom.
People can surf the internet, explore thousands of pieces of media all from home. The claim is that technology is making people feel more connected so they don't have to meet in person, and there may be a degree of truth in that but people still want to get together. However, the new generation is opting to take mass transit since with the advent of the smartphone though the ride is longer, they no longer are as bored since they can distract themselves which is something they cannot do while driving. The car right now is the vehicle of maximum boredom. People would rather spend an hour in transit doing something and getting somewhere, vs 40 minutes of just getting somewhere. The smartphone has enabled mass transit in new ways because it reclaims some time. If traffic dropped, and transport was 20 minutes vs an hour consistently. I think driving would go up.
What do you think, what is making people want to drive less?Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18093468302256896004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32246593.post-30072079931889272712013-04-14T15:48:00.000-07:002013-04-14T15:48:57.700-07:00Big Data and Bikes: San Francisco Tech and Bikes!On April 16, there will be an event at Yammer (9th and Market) about the launch of a new bike sharing program in San Francisco. It will be interesting to see what they have planned to deal with the challenges of San Francisco for public goods and safety. I have a prior commitment but will try to make it. Details at the event are available at <a href="http://bikeshare.eventbrite.com/">http://bikeshare.eventbrite.com/</a>.
The list of speakers in the conversation are a who's who of the local tech industry. Spread the word.Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18093468302256896004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32246593.post-78168756890389829512013-03-17T14:04:00.002-07:002013-03-17T14:04:15.111-07:00How the White House sees Climate Change<a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/03/15/how-the-white-house-thinks-about-climate-change-in-7-charts/">Wonkblog</a> has a nice summary of the White House annual report that gives a good sense of what the policy possibilities of addressing climate change. It is a mixed bag, the arrows are going in the right direction, but now always for reasons that are politically feasible for long term change. For instance, the recession reduced climate emissions, you can't have a continuously depressed economy there and have stability. On the plus side, energy efficiency is improving and we can catch up with Germany and Japan, which will do a lot to help.
Worth a quick read.
Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18093468302256896004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32246593.post-49732640342295924822013-03-06T12:43:00.001-08:002013-03-06T12:43:57.086-08:00Big Time Huge! - The second coming of the light bulb part deux.The Verge <a href="http://www.theverge.com/2013/3/5/4068174/cree-10-dollar-led-light-bulb-incandescent">reports</a> that Cree has announced a $13 LED that resembles an incandescent light bulb in the quality of the light. If this is true, this a huge advancement. For those that are not familiar with LED light technology, it is a semiconductor like a chip, and it's life is effectively forever. When you buy a house you basically get the light forever now.<br />
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To give you a sense of how inexpensive LEDs are, the San Fransisco Bay Bridge (not Golden Gate) is <a href="http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2013/03/bay-bridge-lighting-generates-excitement-in-bay-area.html">now lit up as a public art project </a>for less than $30 a day.<br />
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<iframe src='http://widget.newsinc.com/single.html?WID=2&VID=24547606&freewheel=91002&sitesection=latimes' height='320' width='425' scrolling='no' frameborder='0' marginwidth='0' marginheight='0'></iframe>Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18093468302256896004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32246593.post-41734828499595159522013-01-14T09:53:00.001-08:002013-01-14T09:53:46.856-08:00The change is already upon us.<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/report-says-warming-is-changing-life-in-the-us-2013-1">Business Insider</a> has a resyndicated post from from the AP explaining how the changing climate is having impact on us in the U.S. It is quite sobering. This coupled with the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/even-chinese-state-media-is-angered-by-unprecedented-pollution-in-beijing-2013-1">unreal pollution that is happening in Beijing</a>. (I was in Shanghai and went for my obligatory run during a bad pollution day, needless to say it was a very short run). Environmental issues are becoming very real.<br />
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It can be said that in history we have always had these environmental issues, such as Britain during the industrial revolution, but what is unprecedented is the scale of humanity at this point and the number of producers at a this point in time.<br />
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We have a really good sense of what is going to happen, it's a question of when not what anymore, or more a question of how frequent. I recently watched the movie "<a href="http://shop.nationalgeographic.com/ngs/product/dvds/science-and-space/six-degrees-could-change-the-world-dvd">Six Degrees</a>" that was produced in 2007 and talked about a super storm hitting Manhattan that was eerily prescient.<br />
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The world is different, are we built for it become the real question. </div>
Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18093468302256896004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32246593.post-91914878214788986502013-01-04T12:20:00.000-08:002013-01-04T12:20:07.127-08:00Osmotic Marketing for GoodThere is a fantastic story at <a href="http://www.marketwatch.com/story/can-starbucks-make-you-a-better-citizen-2013-01-04">Marketwatch</a> which explores Starbucks efforts to encourage people to use reusable cups and I applaud this. While Starbucks is really savvy in using their own brand of re-usable mugs to spread their messages, it would be great if they do more to encourage people to bring existing reusable cups. The number of cups I get from marketing efforts is unbelievable. I currently use a 17 year old mug (I kid you now) from a Microsoft Training Class, it is so old that some of the products listed on the tumbler aren't even sold anymore.<br />
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A side note that gives this post some context is that the Consumer Electronics Show starts next week, and I am not sure many of the products that will be announced next week will have the functional longevity of my promotional mug from so long ago. <br />
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Today's technology has an explicit end of life, you can't imagine having batteries that will replace the ones inside since products are hermetically sealed. They are designed to be disposable. They are mandatorily disposable. I can still use the transistor radio of my youth (the stars and stripe AM radio that was so magical when I was young) since it has a classic 9 volt. The EU mandated that mobile phones need to be chargeable by micro USB such that Apple includes adapters in their European phone kits. Planned obsolescence may be good business, but does it make for a good world?<br />
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I have been putting mugs in my car and looking for mugs with handles to attach to my travel bag so I don't ever have to use a paper cup. Starbucks will give you a discount. I wish they would reuse the discarded gift cards and reissue them to save some landfill.<br />
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Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18093468302256896004noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32246593.post-60661340078489351952012-12-10T08:52:00.002-08:002012-12-10T08:52:29.730-08:00The Role of Public InfrastructureNPR has a <a href="http://www.npr.org/2012/12/07/166713212/amtraks-empire-builder-line">story</a> on the role of Amtrak in getting people to the oil fields of North Dakota and Montana. Amtrak is a weird service because like the post office, it really doesn't have the right to cherry pick routes like private services and hence loses money. What's really interesting about this piece is the tortured relationship many have with public infrastructure. The following exchange in the story captures the contradiction, and hopefully this will lead to others to re-evaluate the role of public infrastructure.<br />
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STEVEN MCDUFFIE: The new Amtrak slogan should be: Well, you're paying for it anyway. So, you know, that's the way I look at it.</div>
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BOYCE: Washington state resident Steven McDuffie travels through Montana to get to the Bakken too. Politically he's libertarian. He's pretty much against the idea of government supported transportation. But, he's been riding the Empire Builder every two weeks since February. And some of the stereotypes about riding Amtrak, he says they hold up.</div>
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MCDUFFIE: This is the first time that the train left Edmonds, Washington on time and it's the first time where we're actually scheduled to get into Williston on time since I've been taking the train.</div>
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BOYCE: Overall though, he says his gripes are pretty minor. And, again, it's cheap.</div>
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MCDUFFIE: I know this is ironic because I'm - philosophically I'm opposed to public transportation, but yet here I am having a pretty good time on the Amtrak train.</div>
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BOYCE: And since there's no sign of the Bakken oil boom slowing down for decades, Amtrak can probably count on a lot more people realizing the train is the best way to get there. For NPR News, I'm Dan Boyce in Helena, Montana.</div>
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Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18093468302256896004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32246593.post-80563052220667710332012-12-10T08:35:00.000-08:002012-12-10T08:35:58.615-08:00The whole picture....from recycling to compostable (my addition)The New York Times has an <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/20/your-money/recycling-helps-but-its-not-all-you-do-for-the-environment.html?smid=pl-share">article</a> in the "Your Money" section this past weekend exploring the efficacy of individual recycling and how the act of recycling impacts individual behavior for better or for worse. It's a good read since it explores the real risk that recycling is a token gesture for a "get out of jail card" for consumerist behavior. The article tries to explore both sides in the typical "balanced" approach to journalism these days. Sadly the data is not definitive as to whether recycling programs reduce landfill and total energy use.<div>
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While recycling is getting its due, the new black these days is "compostable" as the free pass. Silicon Valley is full of companies offering free meals, and in the cult of efficiency many offer a huge amount of disposables for use. The pass these days is "it's ok, it's compostable" but that assumes a lot of things. The first is that it will actually compost, the argument is that the fork is "bigdegradable" but just because it can degrade does not mean it will unless in the right conditions. But even if it was degrading, that neglects the greenhouse gas impact of the lifecycle of the plastic fork or paper plate. </div>
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There is energy in producing the materials that will compost, it's classic thermodynamics. Looking at the energy equation in isolation misses the whole picture. Is it better than the alternative, probably. But it's not a total pass.</div>
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The environmental discussion is rationalized in so many ways, oh I should do X instead of Y because that's where the real energy savings are. True, but if you can do Y still why should you not do Y. The logic is I shouldn't murder because that a real bad crime, and I'll not do that instead of armed robbery. You probably shouldn't do both. </div>
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It's easy to get cynical about recycling and stop, so the environmental challenge is a spectrum and continuous. Or as Billy Beane (well Brad Pitt) said in Moneyball, "it's a process, it's a process, it's a process" </div>
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Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18093468302256896004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32246593.post-28566632783685208472012-12-05T18:20:00.000-08:002012-12-05T18:22:05.922-08:00The friction free existence....Felix Salmon has a provocative <a href="http://blogs.reuters.com/felix-salmon/2012/12/05/when-we-cant-see-the-world-for-our-phones/">post</a> on how smart phones are making our lives more dangerous because it makes us less aware as pedestrians. To that, I have to plead guilty as charged. The productivity cult is really pervasive in our society and we feel that we have to be active or stimulated at all times, lest we miss something (like the bigger picture). Given the cultural imperatives it's easy for everyone to get swept into the do it now mood.<br />
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Salmon, talks about how we become less aware and cognizant of our surroundings, that we become less aware of our world. He feels that it's the absorption of ourselves in an alternate world (infospace perhaps) that makes experienced with realspace. I don't think it's just about alternate realities, but the attempts to eliminate friction in our transactions. The question is does the lack of friction actually reduce any energy expenditure, or just hide it.<br />
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Putting all our media in the cloud, do we actually save the energy of not having a DVD and shipping it, or do we simply hide and it move the energy cost to the cloud as well at a higher expenditure. Out of sight out of mind.<br />
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Is having our world in our phones, just another way of having our heads in the sand?Charleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18093468302256896004noreply@blogger.com0