climate change activist and science communicator; photographer; mapmaker
My actual travels, those I aspire to, and those of others
Between tomorrow and Sunday, I will be visiting with family in Vermont for the holidays. As such, posts may be sporadic or absent.
I hope everyone enjoys whichever holidays they care to celebrate, and that the next year is a pleasant and worthwhile one for everybody.
The policy of restrictive carry-on rules appears to be spreading from planes to Greyhound buses. Apparently, as of December 15th, passengers boarding them in Ottawa will be forced to put everything aside from “medication, baby formula and small handbags” in checked baggage. No matter that those rattling baggage holds are hostile territory for cameras, computers, and other delicate items. Likewise, no matter that the logic of security on intercity buses differs substantially from the logic for aircraft, as I have written about previously. The system has already been introduced in Edmonton, Calgary and Winnipeg.
To summarize my earlier post:
It seems that the best low-cost and relatively low-carbon form of intercity travel is about to be needlessly constrained. It remains to be seen whether Greyhound proves enduringly committed to the new procedures once customers start appreciating just how inconvenient and unnecessary they are.
Adding once again to our ever-present debate about the ethics of air travel, a study from the University of California, Berkeley concludes that the major reason planes are more problematic than trains or buses is that people simply travel farther in them. This has two major implications.
For one, it suggests that efforts to curtain short-haul air travel may have limited benefits. If a high-speed rail corridor between Toronto and Montreal would only lead to incremental improvements in emissions reductions, the better course may be to try to discourage as much travel as possible. This may be especially true given another major conclusion of the study: that a very significant share of the environmental impacts of travel arises from the infrastructure (roads, rails, airports), rather than the emissions of vehicles themselves.
For another, it suggests that investing the time and money to travel by bus or train may likewise be less green than would be ideal. The problem may not be choosing to go from Ottawa to Vancouver by air; it may be an inescapable problem of making the trip in the first place.
It is well worth having a look at the webpage for the study, as it contains a lot of additional information. The study’s conclusions were also described on Slate.
Is a web-based service that helps those with spare seats hook up with those willing to pay for rides “facilitating the operation of an illegal transportation service?” The Ontario Highway Transport Board has decided that it is, in a case brought against PickupPal by unhappy operators of bus lines.
While I can see how liability issues arise in relation to safety, it doesn’t seem appropriate for the board to fine and try to shut down this service. As someone who travels frequently by Greyhound, I know that bus service in Canada could stand some competition-driven improvement. This sort of decentralized commerce seems like a pretty good way to reduce the environmental impacts of inter-city travel. After all, having a passenger or two travelling along with you does more for your passenger-kilometres per tonne of carbon dioxide emitted than buying a more efficient vehicle probably would.
While I can see the reason for the bus companies’ grievance – after all, they need to pay a fair bit to comply with commercial transport laws – on balance their complaint seems anti-competitive and likely to be environmentally harmful.
Within a big city, it seems as though it should be possible to satisfy the interests of most people on a regular basis. Those who like art, music, or theatre should be able to find things to their liking often. Likewise, parties, clubs, bars, museums, and the like should be accessible. Clearly, those with exotic tastes will have a tougher time than those with mainstream ones, but it seems as though big cities should cater to most plausible sets of preferences.
When a person lives in a city and has done so for a while, this is usually true. The difficulty arises when one lacks access to local knowledge and people. Then, one becomes a kind of urban refugee: moving between public spaces like coffee shops and tourist spaces like ordinary museum exhibits. It can be quite frustrating to be in an amazing place like New York, London, or Montreal, certain that there are interesting things going on, but being unable to track something down.
How does one go about making the transition from the former to the latter – from engaging with a city like a tourist does to doing so like a local version of yourself would? I am thinking mostly about cities where you speak the language, but advice for situations where there is a further linguistic challenge would also be appreciated.
Since Friday night, I have been in Montreal to visit my brother Sasha, who had his appendix removed last week. I will be returning to Ottawa on Tuesday, at which point I will seek to correct any hiccups in blog posts, photos, and comment responses that have accumulated while I have been here.
The latest symptom of my laptop’s continuing decline is a stubborn refusal to get IP addresses from DHCP servers. As such, even when I do find a free wireless network to take advantage of, the actual process of connection is often proving slow or impossible.
I will soon be returned to full internet splendor.
[Update: 10 November 2008] Sasha has also written a post about this.
Until Wednesday evening, I will be in Toronto for a conference. Does anybody know about any interesting plays, shows, art exhibitions, and so forth that are ongoing in the city now or happening during that timespan? Options that are inexpensive and unusual would be preferred.
My days will be full, but the evenings are pretty much completely free. Photos from the expedition will emerge when next I can bring my camera and my main computer into contact with one another.
The weekend in Montreal has been going well. Largely, it has been and interesting opportunity to re-visit undergraduate residence life – at least, the kind that exists when classes are not in session and most people have headed home to be with family. I appreciate the late night gatherings that turn into extended conversations, the excellent views of the city from dorm rooms on one side of the building, and the 3:00am to 11:00am expected sleeping time.
Yesterday, we visited La Ronde: Montreal’s amusement park, on l’Ile St. Helene. I had only been there once previously, when I was living in Montreal in the summer of 2003. Since they were only $2 more than single passes, my brother and I got passes that are good until the end of October, though only on Saturdays and Sundays. If someone would like to borrow one or both (they don’t have named associated with them), you can send a message for me to pass along.
Tonight, we are attending a Thanksgiving dinner with friends of my brother living in the Plateau area. As such, we must head off to find some kind of food and/or drink offering that does not require cooking facilities to prepare.
I hope everyone has a good Thanksgiving.
I am off to Montreal to visit my brother Sasha for Thanksgiving weekend. There may or may not be posting while I am gone, but there should be photos upon my return.
Given the following:
Should I apply to have my name read in my absence and receive my diploma in the mail?