Plug-in Hybrid vehicles are coming soon.  Unlike conventional hybrids, plug-in hybrids use larger battery packs that can be recharged by connecting to common household electricity. Plug-in hybrids can be driven for long distances without using any gasoline.  Although a current shortage in large battery manufacturing capacity is slowing down production of these cars in mass numbers.

Now if you could charge all of these cars from rooftop solar panels, then you would really have something.  We get free energy from the sun and drive zero emission vehicles.  Yes, that is a plan we could all agree on.

Unfortunately, producing the necessary electricity will result in additional emissions from power stations.  We will need to build more power sources or the utility companies could impose a premium for charging cars during peak times.  Does this we mean we may need new nuclear power plants to meet demand?

So while electric powered vehicles offer a great solution for our future, we have a very long way to go to get there.  It will be at least 2 years until plug-in hybrids are even available and then how long until they are in wide use?  While we are waiting, I suggest Passenger Energy could buy us some time.

photo credit: wryonedwards

My absolute favorite magazine is Fast Company.  I consistently find inspiration every month in one or more articles.  In their current issue, there is good story about the increasing use of reviews and ratings online.  They detail how everyone on the internet knows when you are a dog.

You can see the spread of reviews and ratings from Amazon and eBay to Target and Office Depot. There are also a growing number of opinion-based sites, such as:

• Yelp – Real People, Real Reviews
• TripAdvisor – get the truth, then go
• City Search – Live like an insider
• Urbanspoon - reviews from critics, food bloggers and friends
• Zagat – Eat, Drink, Stay, Play
• Angie’s List – Looking for the best service?

When I am looking for a book, the first thing I do is go to Amazon and read the reviews and ratings.  I find them incredibly helpful and they lead me to a good purchasing decision.

Most of these opinion-based sites are for travel and dining, but Angie’s List is interesting since they rate and review contractors, service companies and health care providers.  Good service will yield high ratings, while poor service will result in a tarnished reputation.

I think similar ratings of drivers and riders would remove some of the uncertainty.  Can you give me any more examples of reviews and ratings that you find helpful?

photo credit: joeltelling

This week’s song is “Handlebars” by Flobots.  I can not embed the video here, but click on the link if you would like to hear it.

This is an interesting song that is very open to interpretation, which is how music should be.  The music and lyrics start very simple.  As the song progresses, it grows in sound and thought.  I think it supports the idea that people can do anything, both good and bad.  That a small group of individuals can determine the future of the planet.

Here is a sampling of the lyrics:

I can tie a knot in a cherry stem
I can tell you about Leif Ericson
I know all the words to De Colores
And I’m proud to be an American

Me and my friends saw a platypus
Me and my friends made a comic book
And guess how long it took
I can do anything that I want
‘Cause look

While researching this song, I also found another Flobots song called “Rise” that I like, but had not heard before.  In the chorus, they repeat the line:

Rise – Together We

Great message!  If you take the time to listen to either song, let me know what they mean to you.

In our current economic slow down, there is some good news.  People are driving less which means fewer accidents.  In this article from the Los Angeles Times, they quote Adrian Lund, president of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety:

One of the few benefits of a bad economy is that you don’t kill as many people in motor vehicle crashes.

According to USA Today, Traffic fatalities on the nation’s roads are down nearly 10% over last year.  This is a huge difference and it means that over 3,000 lives were saved.  In addition, car accidents cost us all financially and a reduction in our driving saves us money.

The number of miles driven during spring and summer declined sharply as a result of high fuel prices.  The Department of Transportation announced that drivers in the USA logged nearly 100 billion fewer miles than in the prior 12-month period.  It is hard to calculate the impact of that many miles, but just think of all the variables:

1. Gasoline saved
2. Decrease of imported oil
3. Reduction in CO2 emissions
4. Less maintenance on our vehicles
5. Diminished wear and tear on our roadways and bridges
6. Drop in tolls paid

In a tough economy, we need to save money wherever we can.  The fact that we also can save lives and gain all of these other benefits just proves the positive effect  that Pay4Rides could have every day.  Are you driving less?  Why?

photo credit: sashafatcat

When I first try to explain this idea to someone, the reaction I receive the most is “I wouldn’t feel comfortable picking up a stranger”.  I fully understand this and I think that is the main obstacle to Pay4Rides actually being implemented.

For inspiration, I offer the Free Hugs video:

This video has had almost 35 million views on YouTube.  If you have not seen this before, please take a few minutes and watch how cautious most people are at first.  I love the way this video builds and builds on its’ own energy.  If you have seen it before, go ahead and watch it again, you know you want to.

This one video has grown into a movement and you can visit the Official Home of the Free Hugs Campaign or the The Illustrated Guide to Free Hugs.  All it takes is a trust and belief in others to make great things happen.

We have all seen the crazy ads for Priceline with William Shatner.  I like the idea of a negotiated price based on many different variables.  On Priceline, you pay more for a 4 star hotel than you do for a 2 star hotel or a luxury car over a compact.  With airfare there are many variables including direct flight or stopover, city of origin, destination, travel dates, time of day and many others.

I would like to apply the same idea to Pay4Rides.  The price you pay for any ride could be based on many factors:

• Arrange the ride in advance or impromptu
• Repeat rider
• Date & Time
• Distance being traveled
• Door to door service or convenient pick-up and drop off locations
• Driver’s rating
• Passenger’s rating
• One or multiple passengers
• Number of miles being traveled
• Quality of the vehicle
• Extras (DVD player, bike rack, etc.)
• Weather conditions
• Tolls
• Parking

If we could schedule rides, then you could make arrangements in advance and agree on a price.  Riders could also post ride requests and open them up to a bidding process like eBay.

Drivers and riders could build up a list of “friends” that could be easily reached with text messaging.  I think with the incredible power of the internet and the wide use of cell phones, we have all the necessary communication tools.  Now we just need to fully utilize our technology to improve daily commutes.

The Asbury Park Press (my local paper) had an interesting story today about New Jersey commuters.  According to census figures, we are number one when it comes to spending time in our cars.  In the story, they list some pretty interesting statistics:

Census figures show the average state commute is 29.4 minutes compared to a national average of 25.1 minutes. Commuters from Marlboro in Monmouth County have the second-longest average commute in the nation at 46 minutes.  Many are solo in their vehicles. Nationally, 76.1 percent of commuters drive alone compared with 72.1 percent in New Jersey.

These numbers back up many of the arguments that I have been making here at Pay4Rides.  Both here in New Jersey and nationally, we are spending almost an hour a day in our cars and we are doing it alone.

Remember, they are called passenger vehicles.  The average car can hold 5 people, maybe 4 comfortably.  Vans and SUVs even more, while sports cars and some pick-up trucks less.  The next time you are driving, look around at all the cars on the road.  How many are single driver only?  Think about all that unused capacity in each vehicle and help me figure out how to begin using it.

photo credit: Looking Glass

“I will open the doors of Government and ask you to be involved in your own democracy again.”           ~ President-Elect Barack Obama

This weekend I posted the idea behind Pay4Rides to www.change.org/ideas.  This is a place where anyone can submit an idea for consideration by the incoming administration.  Click on the “VOTE NOW” button to read and then cast your vote for my idea: 

From the Press Release “Ideas for Change in America”:

The 2008 campaign brought unprecedented levels of political participation and excitement, mobilizing millions of new voters. But with election over, the most pressing question has now become: What’s next? How can the millions of people inspired by the campaign work with the new administration to create real change?

In the lead-up to Inauguration Day, Change.org, MySpace, and their partners will hold an event in Washington, DC to announce the top 10 rated ideas and deliver them to a representative from the Obama Administration. Change.org and MySpace will also announce a formal nonprofit sponsor for each idea. Each sponsoring nonprofit will then launch a national campaign to mobilize the millions of people on both sites to ensure that each top idea gets the full consideration of the Obama Administration and the 111th Congress.

This is a unique opportunity where anyone can submit an idea and comment and vote on others.  Take the time to get involved, express your opinions and let your voice be heard.

On Monday, it will be 28 years since John Lennon was shot and killed.  I had just graduated high school and was in my first year of college.  It was one of those moments where you remember exactly where you were and what you were doing.  I was out with some friends and first heard the news during a Monday Night football game.  It was hard to believe, it didn’t make sense.  Why?

I drove home and sat in my driveway just listening to the radio.  It was amazing, no matter what station you turned to, they were either reporting the news of his death or playing a song by John Lennon or the Beatles.  I searched around and was surprised that someone recorded a scan of the radio dial that night.

Imagine is the song I would like to feature this week:

You may say that I’m a dreamer
But I am not the only one

The idea of Pay4Rides is just a dream right now, but I am hoping that more people will join me.  Where were you that night?  Please share your story here.

The more I research this idea, the more I am amazed that this can not be easily implemented.  Look at all the technological advances we have made in Science, Medicine, Electronics and Computers.  I am humbled by the human spirit.

So why is it so difficult to share rides?  We are currently:

• Investing billions of dollars in new research
• Risking further damage to our fragile ecosystems
• Facing increased Global Warming and Climate Crisis
• Suffering quality of life while stuck in traffic
• Ignoring crumbling bridges & highways

But we can NOT figure out how to get several people to ride together?

Be a hero, save the earth!