Thoughts on Reducing Dependency on Oil

On the farm where I grew up, we called one of the fields the "Interurban" field. The tracks from that electric train system had been removed decades earlier, and all that remained was a long, straight hump of earth cutting across the land where cattle blithely munched the grass, crossing up and over the former transit line numerous times during the day.

A few yards south of the Interurban hump were railroad tracks. When we first moved to the farm, trains still passed by. It wasn't long, however, before they, too, were abandoned. The tracks remained, unused, for many years, with weeds poking up among the gravel beneath the ties. I'd walk along looking for loose spikes lying about or bits of broken plates tossed out the windows of dining cars at the turn of the century--I'd run home across the fields with these treasured shards of the past to show my parents. The bits of pottery seemed mysterious and far removed from my contemporary, automobile-dependent life. Now even the railroad tracks have been torn up and the public right-of-way sold to individuals.

Near the house where I currently live, an electric train called the Monon used to run. Its tracks are pulled up, as well, and the path is preserved as an exercise path—not exactly mass transit, but I guess it can move people from town to city to Downtown if they are willing to do it on the seat of a bicycle.

There's no easy way to restore these tracks and trains, now that they've been condemned. At this time, in my town, there are few solutions to dependency on automobiles. There are no more existing “people-movers,” if you will; mass transit is unavailable. We don't even have bus lines! As Americans fell in love with the independence afforded by the automobile, we simultaneously grew dependent upon it, as well. Society submitted to the preference for individual transport and retired the other options.

Now what do we have? The news is reporting the cry for us to wean ourselves from fossil fuels; they are recommending that families and individuals minimize errands, telecommute and carpool. Heavens, I’ve been wanting to do this for years, but other than a bicycle and carpool, there are no other options to which our family can turn in an effort to reduce gasoline consumption.

Here's what I've found.

First off, it’s nice to see that hybrid minivans are on the horizon. Our family of six can't fit into anything smaller, if we all ride together. So as much as I'd like a hybrid, I have to wait at least a little while:

http://www.hybridcars.com/toyota-sienna-minivan-hybrid.html

But in the meantime we are stuck with our fossil-fuel-lovin’ version. And no buses.

My husband has been talking about riding his bike to work, but around here, drivers aren’t used to seeing bicyclists on the streets, especially during the early morning commute. I know someone from our old church who was hit while biking on that side of town. His back has never been right, even after multiple surgeries. As we were checking in at Great Clips last night, a man was talking about a friend of his who was hit while riding his bike. “It’s a good thing he was wearing a helmet, or he wouldn’t be around to tell about it.” This, of course, makes me nervous about sending out my husband to do his part in conserving gasoline, but it’s one of very few options for us. I can bike to a few stores nearby for groceries. In the summer, I’ll bike to the farmer’s market. It’s a small thing. It’s all we can think of to do right now.

I've been hearing about E85, unsure if it is all it's cracked up to be. This article was interesting.
http://www.grist.org/news/muck/2006/02/24/griscom-little/

This story on one man's discovery of soydiesel was also inspiring. In fact, it seems like one of the most affordable possibilities, if we can find a station that will pump it. I'll bet we will soon. On a TV show one time I had heard about the french-fry-grease conversion that this writer mentioned. Reusing fast-food oil? That sounded like an awesome idea--an ideal recycling project--but official soydiesel sounds slightly more accessible and conventional.
http://63.134.216.19/index.cfm?action=magazine.article&issue=soj0601&article=060141c

(If you can't get to that article without subscribing to the site, that's too bad. It's written in an amusing style. You can just get the facts about soydiesel or biodiesel at this site):

http://www.biodiesel.org/resources/biodiesel_basics/default.shtm

Which technologies--which options--will take off, I wonder? Will E85 or biodiesel finally hit it big? Will a bus system make its way to our suburban communities? Will my parents someday have to relinquish the Interurban field to some statewide mass transit rejuvenation program? Or will many of us simply start riding around town on our bikes? It's got the lowest emissions and best health benefits--that is, if you don't get hit. It can't get us across the state, but it can get us across town. As the weather warms, I'm going to ride more...with a helmet, of course. I might even mount one of those bright orange flags like the one I used to have attached to my banana seat Schwinn while growing up. With the money I save on gas, maybe we'll be able to buy a used Mercedes diesel and start burning soy.

I wonder if I could talk my husband into sporting one of those orange flags on his bike? Do you think? Or is that just too uncool?