Long Time, No Post

The real world got a hold of me unfortunately. I went on a long vacation to Europe and rode on their glorious trains till I couldn't ride anymore. Here are few pictures of my journey.

I had so much of a great time that I didn't really have a chance to take a bunch of pictures of trains and transit like I would have liked. Anyhow I hope to be posting some more articles on here in the future as my professional career is slowing down. In fact you can see a blog/professional site that I am launching in the near future here.

I will have some commentary on transit real soon.

Rocky Mountain High (Praises for Transit)

MSNBC had a great clip this evening about how some cities are doing it right. In the clip, they highlight Denver which is using their new Light Rail system as a way to alleviate high gas prices. It's pretty clear that even in spawling cities like Denver, Light Rail can work.



So why aren't other cities learning from Denver? Is it because they think there is an end in sight with high oil prices? Do they think that cars give them freedom? Or are they just opposed to higher taxes? Something tells me that most people are uninformed about mass transit....

(thanks for the overhead wire for this great video)

Say No to Off-Shore Oil Drilling

I know the idea of cheap domestic oil is tempting, but the fact is that oil production from off shore oil platforms will take 5 years to trickle down to US consumers. The oil that would result from any off shore drilling would be limited. Based on the flow that comes from off-shore in Texas, it would be a small percentage of our daily use.

Proponents of drilling off-shore say that it will increase supply. The fact is that our refineries are at 90% production. They are pretty much maxed out in terms of supply. Building huge platforms in the ocean costs billions of dollars, if oil companies build these mammoths in the ocean, they are going to pass the cost onto consumers. The reason that gas hasn't risen to even higher levels is because oil companies haven't built any new infrastructure for the increased demand. If they are forced to do this, they will pass the costs on because they know their future in oil is limited.

Drilling for oil in AWNR and off-shore is a very short period stop-gate that doesn't solve our energy problem, it feeds our addiction. Drilling off the coast in Florida, California and other states will only increase our demand for oil as it will artificially decrease the supply of oil. Drilling off-shore would have the same impact that ANWR drilling would have. The Department of Energy said that drilling in the ANWR would only reduce prices by 0.75 cents a BARREL by 2025.

The fact is that if we want a sustainable future, we need to invest in alternative energy so that our transportation can operate via electricity. Why go through the middle men of the gas company when you can easily get a more efficient engine that's better for the environment and cheaper.

We can produce 5 million plug-in hybrid vehicles faster before any off shore oil platform becomes operational. Beyond that, they are better for the environment and we eventually cut back our dependence on foreign oil in a way that's great for the economy.