By Zachary Shahan •
October 23, 2009
Naked bicyclists, folding bikes, balloon bikes, and more — enjoy this bicycle photo tour of Barcelona.
The third B in a row, Barcelona is next on this list of great bicycle cities (right ahead of Basel, Switzerland and Bogota, Columbia). As a dense city with a wonderful climate, Barcelona is naturally a wonderful place for bicyclists. However, a lot has been done to make it more so. The biggest carrot encouraging bicycling, by far, is Barcelona’s relatively new bike sharing program — Bicing. This is perhaps the best or second best bike sharing program in the world. It is one of a new generation of sophisticated, smart bike sharing programs. Read more about it on page 2.
Beyond Bicing, the city is also working on creating new bicycling routes and bike parking and it hosts fun Bike Week celebrations every year in May. Also, it has been creating better infrastructure for bicyclists due to so many more people bicycling within the past few years. It is transforming itself into a truly world-leading bicycle city.
Every industry is taking steps to adopt greener methods, and it’s become particularly important in businesses that provide transportation services to consumers because this is what people are looking for. Even if they can’t take big steps to make their own homes and businesses cleaner, they can help reduce their carbon footprint by making wiser environmental decisions. In order to address this shift in environmental perception and need, companies like the Green Tomato Cars Taxi Service in the UK are marketing their businesses to the more environmentally conscientious.
By Zachary Shahan •
October 22, 2009
Bogota is a true testament of how a city can be transformed. Through “radical” action for a better city and clean green transportation, Bogota has become a leader in bicycle transportation.
One step ahead of Basel, Switzerland on this list, Bogota boasts an amazing transformation in the transportation infrastructure and alternative transportation usage of a modern city. Unlike many cities that are renovating primarily for cars or, more admirably, mass-transit, Bogota made sure to put a lot of focus on improving their city for bicyclists and pedestrians as well, the greenest transportation modes!
By Zachary Shahan •
October 21, 2009
If a picture is worth a thousand words, this series of photo tours is going to be worth about a hundred thousand.
You have probably heard before that the cities on this list are great bicycle cities, but the following photo tours will give you a better and more entertaining visual explanation of why they are considered to be so great.
From public art to art on bikes, seas of bicycles to bicycles that could carry a swimming pool, high heels to naked bicyclists, check out these upcoming photo tours of some of the world’s greatest bicycle cities.
The Norfolk Southern Railway recently debuted a green transportation option that’s among the first of its kind. It’s currently only a prototype, but is just the beginning of things to come; with plans by 2011 to unveil a long-range locomotive that will produce zero-emissions.
Cruise ships lead the pack amongst the world’s top polluters in the transportation industry. If you’re a green-minded person who’s been dreaming of a tropical cruise this winter, but don’t want to lend your support to an industry that is a major polluter, you can reconsider because even cruise lines are trying to go green and do their part to reducing the world’s carbon emissions and overall waste pollution.
By Zachary Shahan •
July 25, 2009
Advocates for better, green transportation achieved great success this year with a transportation bill in the House of Representatives that could change the United States forever. Not only advocates have brought this to where it is, though. The general public, the US Chamber of Commerce, AAA, the AFL-CIO, Associated General Contractors of America, and others have brought it to where it is today. This progressive bill would reverse auto-centric federal transportation policies that have led the US into various environmental, social and economic crises for the past several decades.
Unfortunately, delay due to lawmakers’ inability to come to a consensus and the Obama administration’s reluctancy to increase gas prices at this time (which are much lower, in real terms, than they were 54 years ago) may postpone the bill for another 18 months. However, there is opportunity to take action!
By Zachary Shahan •
July 8, 2008
Well, this may not be a hidden issue, but I think it is a highly under represented issue. Transportation is the leading contiributor to greenhouse gases (GHGs) in the country, according to a report by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), and is also the fastest growing contributor, at a time when we are supposed to be making a U-turn in our GHG emissions.
When we talk about addressing global climate change, the talk is often about greening our homes, changing our source of energy, and cleaning up industry.
In my previous post, I briefly discussed the critical issue of food in addressing this problem.
In this post, I am bringing to attention the great relevance of transportation and our transportation patterns and habits in addressing this critical concern for our planet and our future generations.
Automobile travel is a major cause of greenhouse gas emissions according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The Department of Energy reported that the transportation sector accounts for approximately 33% of GHG emissions in the United States. Approximately 61% of these emissions are from automobiles and light duty trucks. The Department of Energy’s findings put the transportation sector as the largest contributor to GHGs in the country. Unfortunately, it is also the fastest growing contributor according to the DOE’s findings.
Whether you’re shopping for an Earth-friendly ride or just interested in learning more about alternative transportation technology, consider checking out the second annual Alternative Car and Transportation Expo in California this week.
Now in its second year, the expo will run from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 19, and Saturday, Oct. 20. Featuring 100 different exhibitors, a slew of seminars, guest speakers and other
[...]
By Philip Proefrock •
August 8, 2007
Right now, a uniquely modified pickup truck is making its way across the country. Starting from Detroit and heading to San Francisco, the vehicles developers are seeking to draw attention to an overlooked fuel alternative. The truck uses a special fuel, something widely available throughout the country, but until now, not widely considered as a fuel for transportation: the truck is carrying three tanks of ammonia in its bed. In addition
[...]
