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Sundance Does Transportation: Cars, Bikes, Trains and More…

Scenes from the Transport episode of the Sundance Channel’s Big Ideas for a Small PlanetRunning a bit late again on my preview of tonight’s The Green; unlike last week, though, I did take the time to watch tonight’s episode of Big Ideas for a Small Planet. As usual, I recommend you also take the time to watch it tonight… lots of food for thought packed into 30 minutes.

Tonight’s theme on BIFASP is “Transport,” and it’s a show that will get diehard tech enthusiasts and community activists excited about the possibilities available for getting from here to there with a lighter environmental impact. Unlike some of the previous episodes, “Transport” takes viewers to places they’d probably expect, and definitely know: New York City, Portland, Oregon, and Boston. While New York’s famous for its public transportation, discussions with city transit officials show they’re moving forward rapidly to make an established system more user-friendly and sustainable. In Portland, human-powered transportation is the focus: Portland’s the most bicycle-friendly city in North America, and you’ll not only find out why, but also see how green transport evangelists are shopping its model around to other American locales.

If your inner techie is underwhelmed at this point, stick around for the third “big idea”: the City Car, a project in development at MIT’s Media Lab. Just imagine the offspring of car sharing, airport rental carts, and electric propulsion. “Transport” also features a range of experts filling in the gaps and connections between the stories told: tonight, you’ll hear from Environmental Defense Fund‘s Michael Replogle, transportation consultant John Kaehny, David Suzuki, Simran Sethi, and others.

Following Big Ideas, Sundance presents the documentary Contested Streets, which takes an in-depth look at “New York City’s chronic gridlock and its concurrent quest for safer, less crowded streets.”

And, yes, we did pick a winner last week for our giveaway of a Sundance gift bag… but, no, we haven’t heard back from the winner, so, if you subscribed to the GO Media newsletter by May 20th, you may still have a shot… and if tonight’s episode of Big Ideas gives you a real green transport jones, spend some time at Gas 2.0 and CleanTechnica.

2 comments
  1. scott

    As I am in the UK I don’t have access to these programmes, but I will keep my eye out for more info on the internet.

    There is a drive in the UK and Europe towards zero emissions vehicles in both domestic use and in commercial vehicles to!

    It will not be long before international trade in zero emissions vehicles picks up and passes the tipping point, the possibilities are endless.

  2. David Zetland

    I just rode my bike to work (from home in DC to Arlington, VA) — 6 miles and 40 minutes. It rained a bit, I got lost, and I was a little sweaty, but it’s sure fun to take yourself somewhere.

    Try riding to work — you’ll find it’s pretty fun and it will break your habit of driving everywhere…

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