Pinko Magazine Hedonism + Activism

Wouldn’t it be great if some days newspapers just led with the coolest story, instead of the most “important?” Like how about on Sunday if the New York Times had just given us the day off from this tedious depression and hyped the day’s most completely awesome story: Ithaca, New York is considering pod cars!

If you’re a transit geek like me this is big news. Pod cars are a popular and highly effective mode of transport in a number of European cities, and they have great potential here. Basically they’re individual-sized mini-monorails. They’re the Tastycake Juniors Yellow Layer Cake of innovative mass transit. (God I worship those cakes.) Here’s how pod cars work:

Pod cars are computer-driven electric vehicles that run on a monorail-like loop, usually suspended above roads, with stops at major destinations.The power source varies from system to system; sometimes the cars carry batteries, and sometimes the power is in the guideway system. At each station, commuters can summon the car like an elevator, then type in their destination. The cars vary in size but hold an average of four people, and might cost users 50 cents to $1.50 per trip. Because pod cars are lightweight and do not make unnecessary stops, they are more energy-efficient than cars and mass-transit systems like buses.

After years of strategizing ways to confront growing traffic, Ithaca is taking a serious look at the pod car and authorizing a study to begin next year. Until now I only think of two things when I hear “Ithaca:”Moosewood (both the cookbook and the time they were rude to me at the restaurant) and those Ithaca is GORGES tshirts, which I never understood and which always seem to be clung tightly to some enormous pendulous hippie breasts. Now Ithaca could be known for something else: an innovative mass transit system that is energy-efficient, cost-effective, reduces traffic and is just mad cute. And don’t tell me for a second Apple wouldn’t kick in some cash for the naming rights.

About The Author - Ben Wyskida is a writer, activist, conscientious hedonist and political communications strategist living in Brooklyn. - Visit Ben's site.