Monday, October 05, 2009

The George-Jetson solution to sprawl


In this October 4 Boston Globe article, Rebecca Tuhus-Dubrow traces the fifty-year history of the Pod Car – a George-Jetsonesque approach to the problems of suburban sprawl.

The ambitious idea has idealistic advocates and vigorous doubters. It could provide an alternative to current visions of public and private transportation -- both of which are seriously problematic today and bound to get worse. Near the end of the article, Tuhus-Dubrow mentions what would be the greatest advantage in the Boston area: avoidance of its "notorious drivers." As someone who was nearly run over at a petting zoo yesterday, I consider anything that gets my neighbors out of the driver's seat is a good thing.

San Jose, California is currently farther along than any other U.S. city in planning a pod-car system. See the sidebar article for details.

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