In the late 19th century, trolley tracks and an elevated railway ran around the entire circumference of the city of Chicago. The encircling infrastructure came to be known as The Loop. The name stuck and is still used to refer to the central part of downtown Chicago today. It may even have been in Elon Musk’s subconscious mind the day he dreamed up his Hyperloop concept.
A study released by the Carbon Disclosure Project this month finds that 103 cities around the world have a serious risk of flooding. Most of the problem can be traced directly to the increased use of concrete and asphalt since the beginning of the automotive age. Land that used to absorb water is now covered with impervious coatings which cause rain and flood waters to accumulate rather than percolating into the soil below.
Charging infrastructure for urban areas is a problem. With open land at a premium in congested cities, finding room to install chargers can be a challenge. Tesla is aware of the issue and, as usual, is being proactive in its response. On September 11, Tesla posted on its blog that it has developed a new compact Tesla Supercharger specifically for use in cities.
President Obama gave an address to students at the University of Chicago on Monday in which he urged them to become more involved in the political process to combat climate change and income inequality.
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced this week that the city has committed to ensure all government buildings will be powered by 100% renewable electricity by 2025, which would make the city the country’s largest major city to power all their public buildings from 100% renewable electricity.
Rush hour Chicago provides an untapped income for the city of Chicago. Traffic enforcement could pick up funds from well-deserved traffic tickets. It seems no one is getting a ticket and the chaos continues. The larger question is — after $32 million of taxpayer money to build it, is the Loop Link being used as intended? No, not much, it seems. It was designed for fluid, fast, reliable movement — time-saving, much-needed flow for the city’s buses. Lost? The Loop Link is specially marked bus lanes meant to offer mass transit an unfettered flight during rush hour times. And yet…
Riding public transportation is a vital means of saving money, money that can much more happily be spent on other things than on owning, driving, and maintaining a car. Transit riders can forget about auto insurance, car payments, fuel costs, tuneups at the mechanic, expensive broken car parts, etc.
The EV company Proterra has been steamrolling over the diesel bus market, and it looks like downtown Chicago is the latest proving ground.
Originally published on Bikocity. A whole new form of public transportation may be coming to Chicago soon, one that literally flies over issues of road use — a sky gondola. Framed more as a tourist attraction, the development would offer 30-minute rides and aerial views over the Chicago River. The … [continued]
In 2014, ComEd launched the IceBox Derby to help girls have a team-oriented STEM learning experience with adult mentors, while having some fun. Recycled refrigerators are used to make the derby cars, and they have some solar power. LED headlights, a car horn, and a helmet with two-way communication are powered … [continued]
