Uncategorized

Can Discounts Convince Londoners [or Vermonters] to Bike and Walk?

Posted by

0

brit bike
Punch a destination into re:route, a new app from eco-rewards company Recyclebank, and it will provide several options. You could walk to the subway, take it to your stop, pick up a bike from the bike share, and ride to your destination. You could get off the subway a stop early and walk. You could ride your own bike, or walk halfway and pick up a bike to get you the rest of the way there.

Photo via (cc) Flickr user Akuppa

via good.is

Love this idea of offering an app and a ‘rewards’ incentive program for biking or walking around town. It’s a simple concept grounded in human nature — and it can work when others don’t.

I’m thinking Local Motion is a good candidate to bring the concept here to Burlington or the Vermont Bike-Ped Coalition statewide. Now I’m off to get my colleagues on board.

Don’t Reinvent The Wheel, Steal It: An Urban Planning Award for Cities That Copy

Posted by

0

Media_httpprecloudfro_wggxa
via good.is

From GOOD, here’s a terrific example of ignoring the ‘standard practice.’ It has always been frustrating to me that the public sector does silos better than most large multinationals — sharing what works just isn’t the norm. So kudos are due to Living Labs Global for encouraging cities to share successful models.

Now let’s just hope the idea catches on….

Put Wind in Your Tank—Vroom!

Posted by

0

Media_httpmediatumblr_evhki
via windsector.tumblr.com

Now this is an intriguing new technology from Germany’s ENERTRAG, via the WindSector blog — the hybrid power plant makes hydrogen from wind power to fuel automobiles! The techies among you will want to click through to see the technical drawings on how it works, but I’m hoping the economic development folks will get busy trying to figure out how we can get one going in Vermont, or at least somewhere in New England….

Cars Don’t Waste Fuel. Drivers Waste Fuel.

Posted by

0

Media_httpwwwwiredcom_ybqfk
via wired.com

The 30% improvement in fuel economy referenced in this article from Wired magazine is a good reminder of the critical role of feedback and behavior change in our efforts to minimize climate change and move toward sustainability.

I must confess to being torn between the advantage of immediate feedback as I drive, and the very real disadvantage of distraction. For those of us driving on Vermont’s rural highways, distraction may be less of a problem, but in many cities it’s a real danger to add anything else to the driver’s mental over-stimulation.

Due in part to this concern, as well as my more subjective preference for the feel of a responsive manual transmission car over a hybrid’s automatic transmission, I’ve opted for a Fiat as my next car. It will be interesting to experiment and observe as I aim to change my own driving behavior…

The Thought-Controlled Prius Bike

Posted by

0

Media_httpwwwwiredcom_flpnb
via wired.com

Toyota’s answered a question no one ever thought to ask: What if the Prius were a bike?

The answer suggests it wouldn’t be as boring to ride as it is to drive. For one thing, the bike uses neurotransmitters to change gears. It looks a whole lot cooler than the car, too.

So starts of Jason Kambitsis’ “review” of one of the projects developed within the Prius Projects campaign from Toyota, which encourages inventors and dreamers to tinker with its technology.

Fresh from a family birthday celebration weekend of cycling (and new eco car test drives), this article jumped right out at me.

I’m a big fan of labs like this in part because I see them as one of the best sources for ideas to help humankind tackle some of our most pressing problems.

Meanwhile, have some fun exploring this idea…