I saw on the news yesterday a few clips of protesting truckers...obviously concerned about ‘unreasonable’ diesel prices. I still can’t figure out why they haven’t been able to raise their prices to suppliers. Perhaps it’s a latency issue – big trucking firms can absorb volatile price swings better than independents – and the same with airlines. But a lower tide lowers all boats...
So here were a bunch of truckers in DC, loosely organized, honking and slowing down traffic. At least the slowing part might help; I think power/speed is non-linear. That is, it takes more than two times the diesel input to double the speed of a tractor trailer, so trucking efficiency is improved. That’s a good thing, isn’t it?
We are dealing with the slow death of the non-negotiable American way of life. And how do we approach it? We deny it, get mad at it, try to bargain with it, get depressed over it, then we accept it. I don’t see this as a short-term issue. I still think in the short term we well stabilize at $3.XX gas and unfettered growth will resume, but not in the long term.
Each of us are in a different stage. Right now, I’m well into the 5th stage. Truckers, apparently, are stuck in the second stage, and they will be there for a long time, yet...and it’s not going to get them anywhere in the long run. And we all know this...but they have to run through the stages like everyone else, so let them have some fun with being mad for a while. Drive 20mph on the freeway, block traffic, be rebels! Scofflaws! But, they will be driving that 20mph on $4.20 diesel. Stage 2 is also panning out elsewhere in the world...food riots, panic buying, one-rice-bag-limits...
But denial is still God – just look to our president. The candidates -- those three have to deny it or bargain to get elected, but they don’t really have anything to get mad about; shit, they personally could absorb 500% increases with smiles on their faces. So they move to offer summer gas tax holidays to bargain with the American people. It feels right, doesn’t it? It just feels right.
It’s odd that on one hand, the candidates all peddle energy independence, while on the other, trying to drive fuel prices lower to encourage more consumption. I have gotten over all this, and accepted that there will never be any coherent, organized national energy policy, because the existing arrangements cannot support such change, and so I accept it. Vote third party, ride the bike, take the bus, eat local organic, and work in the electric industry. I could absorb a 500% increase with a smile on my face.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Liability Through Markets
There came a point, some years ago, back in the California ISO's control room, where up behind the shift managers position someone put up, in separate letterings, the phrase "Reliability Through Markets."
The CAISO has been in existence for over a decade now. It's purpose was and is to operate the transmission system while facilitating a market based system for the delivery of electricity.
We could endlessly debate the effectiveness of such a system; does it work to support lower costs for ratepayers, does it provide open transmission access to all providers, yadda, yadda, yadda. Some say markets are the best approach, others suggest it's just another layer on top of what the traditional utilities already provided, etc.
I don't really know or frankly care about weather or how it is managing their mandate. What I am really opposed to is the new order of complexity the ISO has foisted upon the system of electric power delivery. Fortunately, I am no longer a part of it, trying to understand it myself and then defending it as necessary. It really is nothing more than a service industry, managing the transfer of a product produced and consumed elsewhere. And massively complex, convoluted, and costly to implement. Power delivery on a physical scale is fairly easy to operate and manage. On a financial scale, it's a beast, and getting worse by the year. Complex systems are prone to failure, IMO.
Working one day in the control room, the "R" in Reliability fell off. All that was needed was for the next letter "e" to fall off to paint the complete picture of what the ISO means to me.
The CAISO has been in existence for over a decade now. It's purpose was and is to operate the transmission system while facilitating a market based system for the delivery of electricity.
We could endlessly debate the effectiveness of such a system; does it work to support lower costs for ratepayers, does it provide open transmission access to all providers, yadda, yadda, yadda. Some say markets are the best approach, others suggest it's just another layer on top of what the traditional utilities already provided, etc.
I don't really know or frankly care about weather or how it is managing their mandate. What I am really opposed to is the new order of complexity the ISO has foisted upon the system of electric power delivery. Fortunately, I am no longer a part of it, trying to understand it myself and then defending it as necessary. It really is nothing more than a service industry, managing the transfer of a product produced and consumed elsewhere. And massively complex, convoluted, and costly to implement. Power delivery on a physical scale is fairly easy to operate and manage. On a financial scale, it's a beast, and getting worse by the year. Complex systems are prone to failure, IMO.
Working one day in the control room, the "R" in Reliability fell off. All that was needed was for the next letter "e" to fall off to paint the complete picture of what the ISO means to me.
Gas at Joe's
I do not think any of the three presumptive presidential candidates will steer us in any correct direction.
One of my very first blogs criticized anyone in the U.S. of A. who used the term Energy Independence. This is a fallacy. A pipe dream (whatever a pipe dream is...). Hogwash. Pure, Unadulterated, Balderdash.
Energy independence, if mandated by law tomorrow, would require the immediate reduction in oil consumption by 60%. And refined petroleum products by 15%. I do not have any idea on coal or natural gas imports, but I do believe the US imports LNG, so an immediate reduction here as well would be required.
Not gonna happen.
What a sight yesterday -- Obama at Joe's Junction gas station, where regular is an incredible, unbelievable, shocking THREE dollars and SIXTY-THREE cents a gallon...Outrageous! A Crime! Horrors! Here he was speaking on a podium declaring "Investing in Energy Independence...barrackobama.com"
Is this for real? Did I wake up this morning into another realm? In Middle Earth? What a meathead. And so are Hillary and John, both contemplating a reprieve of the federal gas tax between Memorial Day and Labor Day. These three can't get it. They may want to do the right thing, but political constraints prevent them from doing it. There is no way any of these three candidates can get up on a podium and dictate that their own and their constituents' hyperconsumptive lifestyles are the cause of such 'hardships' and that a wholesale shift in the non-negotiable American Lifestyle is what's likely going to be required.
This is the dilemma in American politics -- mention the hard, and you don't get elected. Speak of the easy -- that there is no sacrifice needed, and you'll get in. A sitting politician does not cater to their electorate, only to his/her contributors...most of whom are banking on things not changing. But during a primary, you have to cater to the electorate -- and to every flavor of electorate...older white women, young black men, gay urbanites, evangelical ruralites, white environmentalists, blue collar factory workers, retired pensioners, Iowan farmers, Southern Californian defense contractors, Northwestern dirt shrimp farmers. All people that consume gas. Thus...Hillary is more open to the gas tax holiday...so long as the lost revenues are made up by the Highway Trust Fund. So where is this make-up money going to come from, Ms. C? My Federal Taxes?
DO EVERYTING WE CAN TO EXCLUDE OUR OWN BEHAVIOR AS A CAUSE.
Doesn't this sound like an alcoholic? "High gas prices aren't because of my 68-mile round trip commute between Liberty Hill and Austin, it's because of those damn Arabians, oil companies, and the leftist environmentalists here that won't allow offshore or artic drilling." This guy gasses up at stations just like Joe's in Indiana. Bickering, but gassing up nonetheless.
One of my very first blogs criticized anyone in the U.S. of A. who used the term Energy Independence. This is a fallacy. A pipe dream (whatever a pipe dream is...). Hogwash. Pure, Unadulterated, Balderdash.
Energy independence, if mandated by law tomorrow, would require the immediate reduction in oil consumption by 60%. And refined petroleum products by 15%. I do not have any idea on coal or natural gas imports, but I do believe the US imports LNG, so an immediate reduction here as well would be required.
Not gonna happen.
What a sight yesterday -- Obama at Joe's Junction gas station, where regular is an incredible, unbelievable, shocking THREE dollars and SIXTY-THREE cents a gallon...Outrageous! A Crime! Horrors! Here he was speaking on a podium declaring "Investing in Energy Independence...barrackobama.com"
Is this for real? Did I wake up this morning into another realm? In Middle Earth? What a meathead. And so are Hillary and John, both contemplating a reprieve of the federal gas tax between Memorial Day and Labor Day. These three can't get it. They may want to do the right thing, but political constraints prevent them from doing it. There is no way any of these three candidates can get up on a podium and dictate that their own and their constituents' hyperconsumptive lifestyles are the cause of such 'hardships' and that a wholesale shift in the non-negotiable American Lifestyle is what's likely going to be required.
This is the dilemma in American politics -- mention the hard, and you don't get elected. Speak of the easy -- that there is no sacrifice needed, and you'll get in. A sitting politician does not cater to their electorate, only to his/her contributors...most of whom are banking on things not changing. But during a primary, you have to cater to the electorate -- and to every flavor of electorate...older white women, young black men, gay urbanites, evangelical ruralites, white environmentalists, blue collar factory workers, retired pensioners, Iowan farmers, Southern Californian defense contractors, Northwestern dirt shrimp farmers. All people that consume gas. Thus...Hillary is more open to the gas tax holiday...so long as the lost revenues are made up by the Highway Trust Fund. So where is this make-up money going to come from, Ms. C? My Federal Taxes?
DO EVERYTING WE CAN TO EXCLUDE OUR OWN BEHAVIOR AS A CAUSE.
Doesn't this sound like an alcoholic? "High gas prices aren't because of my 68-mile round trip commute between Liberty Hill and Austin, it's because of those damn Arabians, oil companies, and the leftist environmentalists here that won't allow offshore or artic drilling." This guy gasses up at stations just like Joe's in Indiana. Bickering, but gassing up nonetheless.
Saturday, April 26, 2008
SEER
Although unknown to his neighbors, my brother-in-law Marc has unbridled access to his condominium rooftop. Although I don't know, and am unsure about his personal habits...one would think that in his San Diego sun he could grow quite the killer homegrown stash.
But I digress. I was thinking about his and my sister's air conditioning unit. It's likely mounted on the rooftop, with the refrigerant line running from the roof down to his first story unit. I was wondering about the efficiency.
My house is on the precipice of a new cooling/heating system. Built in 1991, I have a few observations about my existing environmental "system". For years, we've dealt with summers of high temps upstairs, and a cool downstairs, and winters of hotter than hell upstairs, and freezing downstairs. And although I haven't calculated it, the largest portion of our home's energy usage is directly attributable to the heating/cooling needs. This is likely the same for any home in America.
I am blessed to work for SMUD. Last Thursday, I attended a presentation by a co-worker who detailed the specifics of his own home's energy usage before and after a massive investment in both energy efficient and comfort based improvements. A total EYE OPENER. EVERY issue that I have today, he had, and was able to rectify.
First -- the disparate temperature difference between rooms, as mentioned.
Second -- the long delay in getting hot water to the extremities of the house; the kitchen, and the upstairs.
Third -- Uneven room pressures when interior doors are closed.
Fourth -- High energy draw from the furnace fan.
Fifth -- Air infiltration.
Sixth -- Higher energy draw during the cooling season.
His was a 1998 SMUD advantage home (an example at the time of good efficiency) and was still able to justify $20,000 in improvements to make it both more comfortable and efficient. I am more than willing to do the same.
My 1991 home, built here in the tract-home wasteland of Elk Grove, was one of the first during the 18-year housing boom. It is closer to SACTOWN than most zip codes, where most jobs exist. But, the tract-home mentality of offering low home prices and not giving a shit about the long-term operating costs of a house were readily apparent. Several neighbors suffer from both leaking windows and leaking roofs, and I'm sure ALL of us suffer from the one-size-fits-all approach to HVAC. I personally had issue with an undersized electrical service panel, but outside of this, the issues I have are mainly creature comforts. And energy bills.
Such things might be commonplace. But I have a distinct feeling they don't have to be. Consider $20,000 on top of a $350,000 mortgage, for complete satisfaction and reduced energy bills. I am willing to try this. I spent a lot of money on solar panels to make a difference, and I thought I made decent improvements in personal energy consumption but I have a long way to go. And now I am armed with new information.
At 17 years old, and having sacrificed home improvements to pay off my mortgage, a shitload of replacements are needed in the next few years. A rundown of my home's infrastructure:
Fences -- all replaced last month. Good for the next 20 years.
Carpet -- original! And man, does it look like shit.
Water heater -- original.
HVAC -- all original.
Kitchen cabinets and countertops -- original, but likely we'll want better in 3-5 years.
Roof -- likely OK for the next 15 years.
Windows -- some mold, but overall acceptable.
Siding -- OK, I've kept up with caulking and painting maintenance.
Stucco -- just fine.
The big ticket items are the water heater and HVAC systems. And, while replacing them, I will spent the incremental difference and get a whole house evaluation and will fix all the things that need fixing to get our house to near zero energy usage from the grid. Mark my words...I will have a house that draws in the bottom 10% of all SMUD customers. I will achieve this both through personal consumption changes and through home efficiency measures.
But I digress. I was thinking about his and my sister's air conditioning unit. It's likely mounted on the rooftop, with the refrigerant line running from the roof down to his first story unit. I was wondering about the efficiency.
My house is on the precipice of a new cooling/heating system. Built in 1991, I have a few observations about my existing environmental "system". For years, we've dealt with summers of high temps upstairs, and a cool downstairs, and winters of hotter than hell upstairs, and freezing downstairs. And although I haven't calculated it, the largest portion of our home's energy usage is directly attributable to the heating/cooling needs. This is likely the same for any home in America.
I am blessed to work for SMUD. Last Thursday, I attended a presentation by a co-worker who detailed the specifics of his own home's energy usage before and after a massive investment in both energy efficient and comfort based improvements. A total EYE OPENER. EVERY issue that I have today, he had, and was able to rectify.
First -- the disparate temperature difference between rooms, as mentioned.
Second -- the long delay in getting hot water to the extremities of the house; the kitchen, and the upstairs.
Third -- Uneven room pressures when interior doors are closed.
Fourth -- High energy draw from the furnace fan.
Fifth -- Air infiltration.
Sixth -- Higher energy draw during the cooling season.
His was a 1998 SMUD advantage home (an example at the time of good efficiency) and was still able to justify $20,000 in improvements to make it both more comfortable and efficient. I am more than willing to do the same.
My 1991 home, built here in the tract-home wasteland of Elk Grove, was one of the first during the 18-year housing boom. It is closer to SACTOWN than most zip codes, where most jobs exist. But, the tract-home mentality of offering low home prices and not giving a shit about the long-term operating costs of a house were readily apparent. Several neighbors suffer from both leaking windows and leaking roofs, and I'm sure ALL of us suffer from the one-size-fits-all approach to HVAC. I personally had issue with an undersized electrical service panel, but outside of this, the issues I have are mainly creature comforts. And energy bills.
Such things might be commonplace. But I have a distinct feeling they don't have to be. Consider $20,000 on top of a $350,000 mortgage, for complete satisfaction and reduced energy bills. I am willing to try this. I spent a lot of money on solar panels to make a difference, and I thought I made decent improvements in personal energy consumption but I have a long way to go. And now I am armed with new information.
At 17 years old, and having sacrificed home improvements to pay off my mortgage, a shitload of replacements are needed in the next few years. A rundown of my home's infrastructure:
Fences -- all replaced last month. Good for the next 20 years.
Carpet -- original! And man, does it look like shit.
Water heater -- original.
HVAC -- all original.
Kitchen cabinets and countertops -- original, but likely we'll want better in 3-5 years.
Roof -- likely OK for the next 15 years.
Windows -- some mold, but overall acceptable.
Siding -- OK, I've kept up with caulking and painting maintenance.
Stucco -- just fine.
The big ticket items are the water heater and HVAC systems. And, while replacing them, I will spent the incremental difference and get a whole house evaluation and will fix all the things that need fixing to get our house to near zero energy usage from the grid. Mark my words...I will have a house that draws in the bottom 10% of all SMUD customers. I will achieve this both through personal consumption changes and through home efficiency measures.
Monday, April 21, 2008
Baba Sue
In 2 years time, we will all be driving battery powered hybrids here and there, biodiesel powered tractor trailers, and flying biofueled 777s. I suppose personal modes of transportation will be the first to change; moving a 100 kg person is much easier on battery power than fence posts on a flatbed truck.
Virgin flew a ‘biofueled’ 747-400, what, about three months back, with great fanfare. The hope is that soon they’ll be able to run their entire Boeing fleet on a 50/50 mix of melted hog fat and used french fry oil. Nice!
What wasn’t said was that the plane actually ran on 80% Jet A. The 20% that was bio based was a mix of coconut and babassu oils. And, as I understand it, only one engine of the four on that jet was fed this concoction. So we’re looking at a 95/5 mix.
It takes no great leap to realize that these oils are nowhere to be found in the natural setting anywhere between London and Amsterdam (the flight route), or anywhere in the US for that matter. Babassu is being widely used as a substitute for coconut oil and grows today in the Amazon. So, the next strip of Brazil to be razed will be to build a runway to get our countries’ engineers and agribusiness professionals in to assist the local inhabitants in tearing down their forests for massive oil plantations to ship to the US to assuage our green guilt -- all to power 5% of our aircraft engines.
I wonder what it'd take to reverse that ratio, say 5/95. What about wind power? A renewable resource at 600 mph! A plane creates its own wind – so install a 5th turbine whose prime mover is the wind, powering a generator that can be used to run the onboard electrics, AC systems, and in-flight movies. Lots of fuselage skin surface could also support nanosolar cells; use them to power a battery system to ensure there's sufficient speed to keep the wind turbine running. Use palm oils sparingly, only to supplement the other two systems during hard acceleration and braking.
"FAA to announce today that it will clear Virgin Atlantic to resume flights to the ocean floor."
Virgin flew a ‘biofueled’ 747-400, what, about three months back, with great fanfare. The hope is that soon they’ll be able to run their entire Boeing fleet on a 50/50 mix of melted hog fat and used french fry oil. Nice!
What wasn’t said was that the plane actually ran on 80% Jet A. The 20% that was bio based was a mix of coconut and babassu oils. And, as I understand it, only one engine of the four on that jet was fed this concoction. So we’re looking at a 95/5 mix.
It takes no great leap to realize that these oils are nowhere to be found in the natural setting anywhere between London and Amsterdam (the flight route), or anywhere in the US for that matter. Babassu is being widely used as a substitute for coconut oil and grows today in the Amazon. So, the next strip of Brazil to be razed will be to build a runway to get our countries’ engineers and agribusiness professionals in to assist the local inhabitants in tearing down their forests for massive oil plantations to ship to the US to assuage our green guilt -- all to power 5% of our aircraft engines.
I wonder what it'd take to reverse that ratio, say 5/95. What about wind power? A renewable resource at 600 mph! A plane creates its own wind – so install a 5th turbine whose prime mover is the wind, powering a generator that can be used to run the onboard electrics, AC systems, and in-flight movies. Lots of fuselage skin surface could also support nanosolar cells; use them to power a battery system to ensure there's sufficient speed to keep the wind turbine running. Use palm oils sparingly, only to supplement the other two systems during hard acceleration and braking.
"FAA to announce today that it will clear Virgin Atlantic to resume flights to the ocean floor."
Sunday, April 20, 2008
The Mother Ship
Over the past several months I've been a daily witness to the construction of yet another compound of personal storage pods. And, you guessed it...it's on Franklin Boulevard!
The brand new Extra Space Storage is a wrist rocket shot away from the long established Public Storage compound; both of which are within range of a seasoned longbowman to 49th Avenue Self Storage; which is less than a grenade launcher's range to the Mother Ship, Security Public Storage. I failed to mention National Self Storage because technically you can't see it while biking up and down Franklin Blvd; but it's less than a mile away from the Mother Ship.
The mother ship -- I watched her land about a year and a half ago. She overtook her host with deadly efficiency, a former supermarket that anchored a strip mall near Florin Road. There used to be a black owned BBQ place (which was pretty damn good, by the way) which won Best Actor in a Supporting Role. The other roles were held by other such stores selling Asian knickknacks, a T-shirt store, and other trappings of Asian American oriented consumerism. But when she suffocated the store, her tentacles enveloped all the other stores in the strip mall, and now are slowly tightening.
Actually, how would I know? I have never once checked into any of those ancillary stores to find out. But surely their businesses were counting on an anchor who would keep volume driving by slowly over the speed bumps and perhaps some of them would stop in. Not too many people nowadays come in and out of the Security bunker. And it is a bunker; all indoors, likely climate controlled, and you can now drive in and unload your stuff even when it's raining! The Motherbunker.
I have asked nearly everyone I know, "Have you noticed the explosion in personal storage places?" and no one seems to have noticed. They are everywhere. They fit into odd sized, vacant dirt on the fringes of other businesses, on the margins, backed up against freeways and railroads, and some are even two stories now to reduce their footprints in more dense suburbs. And I further ask "Do you have anything in one of these?" and the answer I always get is "No."
So who the hell is renting them and what the hell is being stored? -- not only do we not want to live without our stuff, we don't want to live with it either. So into the compound it goes, and the first months rent is free! Free! Doesn't cost you nothin'! My friend Mark at the CAISO once told me he rented one during a move, and had it rented so long that the cost of the unit far exceeded the value of the contents. So many are abandoned. My Father-in-Law lived out his retirement bidding on these bins sight unseen, to sell the contents at flea markets. Indeed...my 12 year old lawnmower was a former incarcerated member of one of these compounds.
This is one more symptom of our hyperconsumerism -- 1.875 billion square feet of storage space (four square feet per US resident), in 2005 -- and there have been thousands more added in the last three years, just like the two on Franklin Blvd. My guess -- they are being rented by all those who walked away from their mortgages to store their stuff so that in about three years, when their credit scores are back up and home sales are up and the economy is back up and their incomes are back up, they will buy another house and fill to the rafters with the regurgitated contents of the Mother Ship's rumen.
The brand new Extra Space Storage is a wrist rocket shot away from the long established Public Storage compound; both of which are within range of a seasoned longbowman to 49th Avenue Self Storage; which is less than a grenade launcher's range to the Mother Ship, Security Public Storage. I failed to mention National Self Storage because technically you can't see it while biking up and down Franklin Blvd; but it's less than a mile away from the Mother Ship.
The mother ship -- I watched her land about a year and a half ago. She overtook her host with deadly efficiency, a former supermarket that anchored a strip mall near Florin Road. There used to be a black owned BBQ place (which was pretty damn good, by the way) which won Best Actor in a Supporting Role. The other roles were held by other such stores selling Asian knickknacks, a T-shirt store, and other trappings of Asian American oriented consumerism. But when she suffocated the store, her tentacles enveloped all the other stores in the strip mall, and now are slowly tightening.
Actually, how would I know? I have never once checked into any of those ancillary stores to find out. But surely their businesses were counting on an anchor who would keep volume driving by slowly over the speed bumps and perhaps some of them would stop in. Not too many people nowadays come in and out of the Security bunker. And it is a bunker; all indoors, likely climate controlled, and you can now drive in and unload your stuff even when it's raining! The Motherbunker.
I have asked nearly everyone I know, "Have you noticed the explosion in personal storage places?" and no one seems to have noticed. They are everywhere. They fit into odd sized, vacant dirt on the fringes of other businesses, on the margins, backed up against freeways and railroads, and some are even two stories now to reduce their footprints in more dense suburbs. And I further ask "Do you have anything in one of these?" and the answer I always get is "No."
So who the hell is renting them and what the hell is being stored? -- not only do we not want to live without our stuff, we don't want to live with it either. So into the compound it goes, and the first months rent is free! Free! Doesn't cost you nothin'! My friend Mark at the CAISO once told me he rented one during a move, and had it rented so long that the cost of the unit far exceeded the value of the contents. So many are abandoned. My Father-in-Law lived out his retirement bidding on these bins sight unseen, to sell the contents at flea markets. Indeed...my 12 year old lawnmower was a former incarcerated member of one of these compounds.
This is one more symptom of our hyperconsumerism -- 1.875 billion square feet of storage space (four square feet per US resident), in 2005 -- and there have been thousands more added in the last three years, just like the two on Franklin Blvd. My guess -- they are being rented by all those who walked away from their mortgages to store their stuff so that in about three years, when their credit scores are back up and home sales are up and the economy is back up and their incomes are back up, they will buy another house and fill to the rafters with the regurgitated contents of the Mother Ship's rumen.
Saturday, April 19, 2008
Expand Mass Transit!
With traffic and energy prices worsening, now is the time to shift to affordable public transportation. Fortunately, Americans like me have finally recognized the need for everyone else to do exactly that.
Expanding mass transit isn't just a good idea, it's a necessity. Driving from Elk Grove to Sacramento at 7:45 in the morning, sometimes I sit in traffic for upwards of one hour to get to work. It's about time somebody did something to get some of these other cars off the road. I'd bet that expanded bus service from Elk Grove would cut 10-15 minutes off my morning commute drive time.
On days I don't drive, my other slogan on the back of my bike shirt would read "Take the Bus...I'll be Glad You Did." I've seen a lot of other people on the bus these days...it's not your daddy's transit system anymore. It isn't just a means for some poor sucker to get to work...he should also be using it to drive to the laundrymat, the market, and the mall.
Expanding mass transit isn't just a good idea, it's a necessity. Driving from Elk Grove to Sacramento at 7:45 in the morning, sometimes I sit in traffic for upwards of one hour to get to work. It's about time somebody did something to get some of these other cars off the road. I'd bet that expanded bus service from Elk Grove would cut 10-15 minutes off my morning commute drive time.
On days I don't drive, my other slogan on the back of my bike shirt would read "Take the Bus...I'll be Glad You Did." I've seen a lot of other people on the bus these days...it's not your daddy's transit system anymore. It isn't just a means for some poor sucker to get to work...he should also be using it to drive to the laundrymat, the market, and the mall.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
