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Ithaca and Thompkins County has a laudable transit system in general,  
right down the the bike place on the corner where you can just go get  
one for the day when you need one, and then return it.

And, (for Gene) the Ithaca Brewing Company just won a bunch of  
prestigious beer awards, from what I hear. And I was able to give up  
my Trader Joe's coffee in favour of fair trade bird friendly just out  
of the roaster about a mile away.

Ithaca has it's own health insurance co-op, it's own monetary system,  
and and an amazing network of small local farmers and co-ops. And I am  
overwhelmed by the kindness and community spirit of all the people  
I've met. I don't think there is one neighbour within a two square  
mile radius who didn't come by and introduce themselves and give us  
phone numbers and offer help. The man directly across the street is  
both the ag extension man, a prof at Cornell, AND a certified organic  
farmer who has been helping us to get our fields in better shape.

We do have all the big chains at the south end of town, in their own  
little ghetto, but there is a thriving local economy in the town itself.

I really feel like I've died and gone to heaven. (Now, better save  
this for when you see me whine about 4' of snow in May...*lol*)






On Oct 15, 2008, at 11:31 AM, bob ford wrote:

> I don't know how this will work in an area that really needs public  
> transportation.  A freight train in the Az desert was derailed a  
> while back with the assistance of a five dollar rod of pig  
> iron........
>
> And, who will pay for the cost, and with what money?
>
> We are about to open a new billion dollar light rail system in  
> phoenix, and I have already heard talk that community groups will  
> buy passes for the homeless to give them a free place to hang out  
> all day. That kind of idealism is laudable.
>
> Unfortunately, You can bet , if that happens, the light rail will be  
> just like the bus system.  The people TPTB desire to quit driving so  
> much will stay away .   .....bobford
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>
> --- On Wed, 10/15/08, Gene GeRue <genegerue AT ruralize.com> wrote:
>
> > From: Gene GeRue <genegerue AT ruralize.com>
> > Subject: [Homestead] Progressive Ithaca onto pod cars
> > To: "Homestead" <homestead AT lists.ibiblio.org>
> > Date: Wednesday, October 15, 2008, 9:12 AM
> > ITHACA, N.Y. — The thought of a driverless,
> > computer-guided car
> > transporting people where they want to go on demand is a
> > futuristic
> > notion to some.
> >
> > To Jacob Roberts, podcars _ or PRTs, for personal rapid
> > transit _
> > represent an important component in the here-and-now of
> > transportation.
> >
> > "It's time we design cities for the human, not for
> > the automobile,"
> > said Roberts, president of Connect Ithaca, a group of
> > planning and
> > building professionals, activists and students committed to
> > making
> > this upstate New York college town the first podcar
> > community in the
> > United States.
> >
> > "In the podcar ... it creates the perfect blend
> > between the privacy
> > and autonomy of the automobile with the public
> > transportation aspect
> > and, of course, it uses clean energy," Roberts said.
> >
> > With the oil crisis reaching a zenith and federal lawmakers
> > ready to
> > begin fashioning a new national transportation bill for
> > 2010, Roberts
> > and his colleagues think the future is now for podcars _
> > electric,
> > automated, lightweight vehicles that ride on their own
> > network
> > separate from other traffic.
> >
> > Unlike mass transit, podcars carry two to 10 passengers,
> > giving
> > travelers the freedom and privacy of their own car while
> > reducing the
> > use of fossil fuels, reducing traffic congestion and
> > freeing up space
> > now monopolized by parking.
> >
> > At stations located every block or every half-mile,
> > depending on the
> > need, a rider enters a destination on a computerized pad,
> > and a car
> > would take the person nonstop to the location. Stations
> > would have
> > slanted pull-in bays so that some cars could stop for
> > passengers,
> > while others could continue unimpeded on the main course.
> >
> > "It works almost like an elevator, but
> > horizontally," said Roberts,
> > adding podcar travel would be safer than automobile travel.
> >
> >
> >
> > We trust that our very own Ithaca insider, Moon/Celia/Mrs.
> > Morgan will
> > keep us up-to-date on this exciting possibility.
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>
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