I was thinking about something to write in here in English. Well, I decided to talk about the SUBWAY.First of all, let me set the picture. I'm a green person and I try to stay green. I take the bus or the subway, instead of driving my car (it`s on my "to do list" to get rid of it). Anyways, usually, I take the bus because it's faster and cheaper. It's less than 100 m from my house and it drops me less than 50 m from work. AND IT'S $ 1 REAL CHEAPER. The subway it's good when I feel like walking and walking on the sun, the sun of CERRADO, I'm not sure how to translate that. It's a dry hot weather typical of high altitudes. oh yeah, back to the subway. The subway here costs around R$ 3,00 (Brazilian currency) according to todays exchange rate it would be around $ 1, 72 US Dollars. I think it's expensive, specially because it only goes one way and because the brazilian minimum salary is around R$ 510,00 or US$ 292,45. Did I mention, I'm talking about the subway of Brasilia, the capital of Brazil, one of the biggest countries in America and the world?Well, the subways has two lines, Samambaia and Ceilandia, which are both located in the same area of the Federal District. Also, it only goes half way Brasilia, to the Central Station.see for yourself
Source: http://www.metro.df.gov.br/005/00502001.asp?ttCD_CHAVE=5198.Note: this is a map available at the subway website and it does not reflects the map of Brasilia. To get the real picture you need to look the second picture below.As you can see in the photo, if you live in the middle of the way, it doesn't matter which way you're going. It's kinda of funny, because most of the people goes of the subway at the exact same place which is the central station. I mean, from the station to midway, the people only go in the subway. After that the wagon is crowed until you hit the central station. Which most of the times means you'll have to take another transportation and, HELLO, pay again. If you take the "integration bus" you don't need to pay, true. very true. On the other hand, the BUS TICKET ONLY COSTS $ 2,00 REAIS. And yes there is traffic and yes it is crowed, YES THEY ARE A THREATEN TO THE ENVIRONMENT, especially because they are shitty buses falling into peaces. Actually they are filthy engines in a nice carcases.Sometimes, it's difficult to make a choice, the subway is ridiculous. The price for the service they provide it's outrageous AND LET's NOT TALK ABOUT CORRUPTION FOR NOW, SHALL WE? Second, the buses are so pollutant as cars or more, because they are second-handed, LET'S NOT TALK ABOUT CORRUPTION, PLEASE.I really dream about a non-pollutant public transportation.I still can't believe that Niemeyer and Lucio Costa, the comunists designers of Brasilia, the modernists influenced by Le Corbusier, could design a city from scratch and simply forget subways. BRASILIA IS 50 YEARS OLD. maybe it was budgetary issues... as usual... How old are subways? I don't know.
Source: http://www.brasil-turismo.com/distrito-federal/mapas-df.htmNote: the original design of Brasilia was of a butterfly, but many people refer to it as the airplane city. And the lake was not there originally. some small rivers, I think, were sweved to make that lake around the city.Well, I'm a hepless optimistic, I have to believe there is going to be one day a decent public transportation in my country. I still prefer to take the bus, I think is better than the car considering I'm sharing the CO2 emissions with lots of other people. But what I really wish for it's a different kind of transportation, I guess.That's all for now. next chapter will be dedicated to cultural diversity and the french exception clause.
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Posted by Marcia Divack on September 30, 2008 at 3:30pm
ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- Mohammed Hussain got 3,000 gallons of gas delivered to his Chevron station in suburban Atlanta on Saturday. By Sunday morning, all of the gas, priced at $4.39 per gallon for regular unleaded, was gone."We're dry. We've got no gas here," Hussain, the station's manager, said Monday morning.He said he has "no idea" when the next shipment will come, even though he's been in constant contact with the local terminal."It could be days," he said. "Obviously, we're disappointed. We're being patient. That's all we can do."Across metro Atlanta, drivers in one of the nation's largest commuter cities are running into the same thing: a lack of gas and no clear idea when the situation will get better. State and industry officials say they're working as fast as they can and are urging people not to panic.Christina Wedge, a resident of the Atlanta suburb Decatur, said her tank was on empty Sunday. When she went to fill up, she passed six stations closed down before finally finding one with gas for nearly $5 a gallon. She got just enough to continue looking for a cheaper price. Watch how hurricanes have wreaked havoc with gas in the South »About a mile away, she found a station with long lines for gas around $4.29."I waited 30 minutes to get gas," she said. "It does concern me. I'm actually frustrated that the prices are so high."Michael Lanfreschi, an iReporter from the suburb of Alpharetta, shared a similar story. He said he left work around noon to fill up his tank "when I started noticing all of the gas stations were empty." iReport.com: Watch gas-thirsty Georgians waiting for tanker"There was no gas to be found, then panic set in as I approached a gas station with a 40-car line," he said. "This is causing complete chaos. Why is this happening, and what actions are being taken to prevent this from happening again, and why did it happen in the first place?"According to AAA, Atlanta's drivers are in for sticker shock when they do find a station with gasoline. The average price in metro Atlanta, as of Monday, for a gallon of regular unleaded was $4.02, nearly 30 cents higher than the national average of $3.74. See where gas prices are surging »The gas supply has taken a major hit as refineries in the Houston area try to get back up to full capacity in the wake of Hurricanes Ike and Gustav, state and industry officials say. The Colonial Pipeline, which typically delivers 100 million gallons of gasoline, aviation fuel and other petroleum products throughout the southeastern United States, is not running at full capacity."Since the hurricanes both hit, we have been tapping the reserves of the stockpiles of the fuels that were made before the hurricanes hit, and we've been delivering those," said Steve Baker, a spokesman for the pipeline."That's caused us to operate at a reduced rate, less than we're capable of. So that's been part of the problem that we've faced, and we're trying to overcome."Further complicating matters is that metro Atlanta has more stringent environmental requirements than other areas, meaning gas from other cities can't be brought in because it doesn't meet the city's smog requirements. The state is working with the state energy agency and the Environmental Protection Agency about getting a temporary waiver of that rule, said Bert Brantley, a spokesman for Gov. Sonny Perdue's office."I don't want anyone to think that's a panacea," he said.But he added, "Anything that would help us get another truckload or two ... is going to help the situation."Brantley said the state has already lifted some regulations allowing for drivers to work more hours to get fuel from the main terminal to stations and for heavier trucks to be allowed to carry larger loads than normal. The state is asking people who don't need to fill up their tanks to wait until later before doing so."There's somewhat of a shortage right now, but it certainly could get a lot worse if people were to panic and react in a way that would cause a run and drain what supply there is out there now," Brantley said. "That's why we're encouraging Georgians to conserve as much as possible."The state would not offer a timeframe on when the situation might return to normal. Brantley, however, said the situation with Houston's refineries is getting better every day.Jim Tudor, the president of the Georgia Association of Convenience Stores, which represents about 2,600 stores, praised the state for lifting some of the restrictions to allow for quicker delivery of fuel."We are working as fast as possible to try to get as many stations refilled," he said. "Having said that, we're still in catch-up mode."That brings little relief to consumers.iReporter Dustin Gatlin said he waited 45 minutes Sunday at an Atlanta QuikTrip before it shut down. He then waited for well over an hour at a different station."Yesterday, we were in line for about two hours and they actually had people [who worked for the gas station] out there directing traffic because there were people jumping in line, and they actually had to get people out there to watch," he said.My only hope is that some good will come of this . . . that more people will begin to use public transportation. Of course, I love to say "I told you so!" When all my friends look at me askance because I ride public transportation, I get to look at them the same way now and ask "So how long did you wait in line for gas today? How much gas did you burn, just looking for a line to wait in? Sure, I have a car, but it is strictly for getting places public transportation can't get me.Read more…
