Motormouth

The I-GO Blog has moved!

2009-12-17T13:44:00.002-06:00

We are no longer posting on this Blogger site.

Please visit our new blog at http://www.igocars.org/news/

Free & Fun Event in Chicago this Weekend: "Imagination and Innovation for Oil and Water"

2009-10-23T14:42:00.006-05:00

Looking for something to do this weekend that is both interesting and free? You should check out the Illinois Humanities Council event "Wellsprings Eternal: Imagination and Innovation for Oil and Water".

The event features a panel discussion on the imaginative and creative solutions being developed in order to deal with the Earth's finite supplies of oil and water. And on an I-GO related note, Scott Bernstein (the President of the Center for Neighborhood Technology, the non-profit from which I-GO sprung) will be one of the 3 featured panelists.

The other two panelists are Greg Watson, the Senior Advisor for Clean Energy Technology of Massachusets Executive Office of Energy & Environmental Affairs, and Henry Henderson, the Midwest Program Director of the Natural Resources Defence Council.

Participants will also have the opportunity to learn about Chicago's award-winning Green Alley Program and to learn more about several Archeworks community design initiatives, including Pocket Parks, Local Loops and Sustainable Food.

EVENT DETAILS

Where: Archeworks (625 N Kingsbury St. Chicago IL 60654)

When: Saturday, October 24th from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m.

Free, but reservations are required. To save your space click here.

Suburu supports I-GO Car Sharing

2009-10-23T10:16:00.003-05:00

Big thanks to Chicago's Mid City Suburu for generously providing I-GO with a beautiful, new, 2010 Suburu Legacy mid-size sedan. Great to see them supporting car sharing in Chicago. Car was dropped off at our office yesterday and will be located at Lakeshore East's awesome Aqua tower, 225 N. Columbus Dr. Need to show a business client around town? Got a date to impress? This'll do.

I-GO Car Sharing expands into Des Plaines this November

2009-10-22T13:54:00.006-05:00

We will be continuing with our suburban expansion by adding two cars in Des Plaines next month. A Toyota Prius Hybrid and Honda Insight Hybrid will be going into the City Parking Lot 9 on the south side of Miner Street, between Lee and Graceland Streets.

Use the promo code desplaines25 on the application and sign up to become an I-GO member for only $25 (a $50 savings!). Our 13,000+ members have 24/7 access to more than 200 hybrid and low emission vehicles in Chicago, Oak Park, Evanston, Skokie, Forest Park and now Des Plaines as well.

Check out the new rides:

Toyota Prius Hybrid: http://www.toyota.com/prius-hybrid/

Honda Insight Hybrid: http://automobiles.honda.com/insight-hybrid/

Has anyone driven either of these types of cars yet? I've driven the new Prius but I haven't had a chance to try out our new Honda Insights quite yet.

Mayor Daley gets a charge of out I-GO

2009-10-12T13:17:00.001-05:00

I-GO & Electric Charging Stations from I-GO Car Sharing on Vimeo.

On Saturday, Oct. 10, I-GO Car Sharing was prominently featured in a high-profile press conference and exhibition hosted by Magellan Development Group at its new, high-profile Aqua tower in Chicago's Lakeshore East community. The Aqua, an 82-story mixed-use structure designed by architect Jeanne Gang with many environmentally beneficial elements, includes the Midwest's first electric vehicle charging station open to the public.

Mayor Richard Daley participated in the charging station demonstration of a plug-in electric Prius provided by I-GO. The new station adds to the progressive efforts of newly created Carbon Day Automotives, a Chicago firm employing the Coulomb Technologies ChargePoint Network of electric charging stations. A new infrastructure for electric electric vehicles is being created to deal with the fact that virtually every auto manufacturer has announced plans to produce plug-in vehicles in the next one to three years in response to concerns over high gas prices, oil dependence, and the impact of climate change on the environment.

The six-charger station at Aqua will accommodate up to 24 plug-in vehicles. To access it, and others in the ChargePoint/Carbon Day Automotive network, drivers of plug-in vehicles will be required to subscribe to a plan that will provide convenient and affordable access to all public charging stations.

All plug-in stations are connected by computer network to provide drivers with best access to outlets. Drivers can access locations based on the navigation system in their vehicles, computers, telephones, or smartphones. The system no only identifies the closest stations but tells subscribers which are idle and which are occupied.

The event was significant for another reason as well. It provides an impressive prototype for the kind of sustainable-energy infrastructure Chicago will be building with funds awarded via the U.S. Department of Energy's 2009 Clean Cities Petroleum Reduction Technologies grant program. Recently, Mayor Daley announced, Chicago was the recipient of $15 million in stimulus funding allocated toward this purpose. I-GO is among the partners committed to transforming Chicago's sustainable transportation, along with ComEd, Carbon Day, Magellan, the City of Chicago's Department of the Environment, and Yellow Cab, all of whom also took part in the Aqua event.

I-GO has two plug-in electric vehicles in its metro-wide fleet, which is entirely comprised of highly fuel-efficient, low-emission vehicles. Hybrid gas-electric vehicles account for nearly half of the organization's fleet. The non-profit plans to add many more plug-ins in the near future and work in tandem with the imminent solar-panel-powered electric charging station network to help lead the way toward greener mobility in the Chicago area.

This video includes both the press conference proceedings as well as interviews with I-GO CEO Sharon Feigon and Carbon Day Automotive's business development manager, Brian Levin, recorded earlier at the latter org's Carbon Day Festival in Lincoln Park on Sept. 15.

I-GO converted plug-in featured in Consumer Guide Automotive

2009-10-09T13:25:00.003-05:00

A reporter from Consumer Guide Automotive featured I-GO's converted Prius plug-in electric car in his Test Drive column. Check out what he has to say about these cars, which are still quite rare (for now).

I-GO adds SUV in Uptown

2009-10-06T11:01:00.002-05:00

Uptown I-GOers will dig this: We recently added a Honda CR-V compact SUV at the Bridgeview Bank location, 4753 N. Broadway, next to the Prius and Civic already there. Once that new Target opens down the street, you can really go nuts loading up this baby. Book it now while it's still got that new-car smell.

I-GO green-cleaning entrepreneur on Chicago Tonight

2009-10-02T11:24:00.004-05:00

Tanya Killian, the dynamic entrepreneur behind the local green-friendly cleaning service I-GO uses, was featured on Chicago Tonight yesterday in a segment on microcredit loans. Killian's company, WashMe-EnviGreen, handles our entire fleet. I-GO makes a cameo appearance. If microcredit can help such hard-working, passionate folks like Tanya, we think it's a concept worth extending and building upon.

Congrats, Tanya!

Watch the video >

Urban Sustianablity: Are big cities the greenest of all?

2009-09-29T12:23:00.004-05:00

Contrary to conventional thinking about the environment, New Yorker staff writer David Owen argues that the greenest community in the United States is not Portland, Oregon, or Snowmass, Colorado, but New York, New York. Most Americans think of crowded cities as ecological nightmares, yet residents of compact urban centers, Owen shows, individually consume less oil, electricity, and water than other Americans. Hear the author share his views on why living in cities is the best way to be green.

Green Metropolis: Why Living Smaller, Living Closer, and Driving Less
are the Keys to Sustainability

Thursday, October 1
6:00pm lecture
7:30pm book signing

COST $15 general public; $10 CAF Members; $5 students with valid ID
LOCATION Chicago Architecture Foundation, 224 South Michigan Avenue
RSVP Register online or call Whitney Moeller at 312.922.3432 x271

Northwestern U: I-GO's got class

2009-09-29T10:45:00.004-05:00

Wildcats rules. Especially when they write about us.

I-GO wins Illinois Environmental Leadership Award!

2009-09-25T14:16:00.003-05:00

The Illinois Environmental Council, which provides a forum for statewide environmentalists in Springfield and promotes sound environmental laws and policies, honored I-GO Car Sharing at its 7th annual Environmental Leadership Dinner, Sept. 24, at Hotel InterContinental Chicago. I-GO was one of three recipients of the Environmental Leadership Award, along with 18th District Illinois State Rep. Julie Hamos and the Austin-Wide Parent Network's joint initiative with the Healthy Schools Campaign. The keynote speaker was no slouch either: Jon Carson, chief of staff for the White House Council on Environmental Quality. I-GO got the nod for being "a successful social enterprise that is reducing the individual and societal costs of driving."

Evolution of the wheel, New Yorker-style

2009-09-24T12:32:00.002-05:00

Best transportation-themed magazine cover ever?

I-GO CEO Sharon Feigon shares vision for car sharing

2009-09-21T12:02:00.005-05:00

Curious to hear how the I-GO Car Sharing braintrust views car sharing? The Great Lakes Urban Exchange—an org dedicated to the revitalization of the Great Lakes region through positive social change and environmental progress—recently interviewed I-GO's CEO Sharon Feigon and included the discussion as a podcast in a blog post.

Sharon talks about the impetus for I-GO, its mission to reduce car ownership and greenhouse gas emissions, partner on sustainable transportation for the benefit of all communities, and much more.

You won't find a Beemer in I-GO's fleet. But you will find a bona fide, earnest desire to improve our world for the better.

I-GO 'round the world

2009-09-18T11:56:00.004-05:00

Cara Dillon is a honey-toned folk singer from Ireland who's just one of many great acts playing this year's World Music Festival. The fest gigs happen all over Chicago from today through next Thursday. Dillon's on the bill tomorrow with Kusun Ensemble from Ghana and our hometown's own Chicago Afrobeat Project at the Edgewater GRalley, a cool new event that takes place in and around the alleys off Granville in the Edgewater 'hood. I-GO will be getting folks to tune into car sharing by offering $25 membership sign-ups at the event. We hope saving big bucks on car expenses is music to your ears, though it'll be tough competing with these dulcet pipes from the Emerald Isle.

Blue Planet Green Living profiles I-GO

2009-09-17T13:14:00.004-05:00

We love all press coverage, but most articles and posts on I-GO don't go the distance.

This one does. It really does a nice job hitting on all aspects of our org, from the member benefits to our green tech initiatives.

Blue Planet Green Living is an interesting green-biz site worth checking out. Excerpted from their bio page:

We’re on a quest to find organic, green, and natural products as well as services that support a healthy environment. As BPGL grows, we’ll be building a road map to guide you through the maze of websites and introduce you to earth-friendly businesses and people that we believe in. Our focus is helping what we call ecopreneurs, the folks who launch start-up companies that are focused on helping the planet. We also like to showcase the undiscovered (or little-known) individuals or families who are trying to help in their own unique ways. But, big or small, we’ll lend our support to anyone who is working to sustain the earth, keeping it blue and green (and every lovely color in between), just like it’s supposed to be.

We heartily second that notion.

I-GO Car Sharing expanding throughout Evanston

2009-09-13T10:37:00.003-05:00

How much does I-GO love Evanston? Let us count the ways. Twelve to be precise.

The three new vehicles joining our Evanston flock in August (Honda CRV, Toyota Yaris, Honda Odyssey—see below for details) bring the number of I-GO cars in the community to an even dozen.

We're psyched that the South Blvd. and Hinman Ave. cars bring even more I-GO cars to south Evanston residents. And we think the Odyssey minivan in north Evanston is a pretty big deal, too. Previously, the closest I-GO minivan for Evanstonians was miles away on Chicago's North Side.

So load up the groceries and get those kids to their soccer game on time. It's easier than ever with I-GO.

New I-GO cars in Evanston:

View Larger Map

#4440
508 South Blvd. (at Hinman)
Honda CRV sport utility

View Larger Map

#4441
508 South Blvd. (at Hinman)
Toyota Yaris hatchback

View Larger Map

#4442
828 W Noyes St.
Honda Odyssey minivan

Work at I-GO: Fleet Assistant needed

2009-09-08T10:02:00.004-05:00

I-GO Car Sharing is looking for a person to serve as a full-time Fleet Assistant focusing on our suburban locations. The Fleet Assistant must be comfortable driving, biking, and using public transit throughout the Chicagoland area to aid in servicing the I-GO fleet of more than 200 vehicles.

Responsibilities:

Coordinate the scheduling and delivery of vehicles to auto shops for routine maintenance, oil changes, and service.

Arrange for jump-starts and tire repairs, shuttle and relocate vehicles, troubleshoot technical issues, and help out with members problems.

Maintain and suggest improvements to parking locations and signage in addition to stocking brochures and updating vehicle stickers and literature as needed.

Work to assist the Fleet Manager with vehicle disposal as well as facilitating the readiness and delivery of new vehicles to their assigned locations.

Respond to vehicle and member-related emergency situations.

Provide on-call assistance as needed.

Maintain precise documentation of activities and provide daily reports to the Fleet Manager.

Qualifications:

Ability to work without close supervision, maintain accurate records, and organize materials.

Manage and sustain detail-oriented schedules and tasks.

Demonstrate hands-on experience and knowledge of fleet maintenance within the automotive field.

Good working knowledge of the city of Chicago and its suburbs.

Flexibility and willingness to work odd hours as necessary.

Solid verbal communication and interpersonal skills.

Possess a valid driver’s license with an excellent driving record.

Preferably owns and operates a personal automobile for work purposes.

Hours of Duty:

Monday through Friday during daytime hours. Available as needed on weekends.

Compensation:

Full-time position with complete benefits, salary is dependent upon experience. The Fleet Assistant will report to the Fleet Manager.

Anti-Discrimination Policy
The Center for Neighborhood Technology (including affiliates CNT Energy and I-GO Car Sharing) is an equal opportunity employer that does not discriminate against any employee or job applicant based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age disability, veteran status, or marital status. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including, but not limited to, hiring, termination, promotion, transfer, layoff, leaves of absence, compensation and training.

Salary is commensurate with experience.

To apply:
Please send cover letter, resume, and salary history to:

Human Resources
Center for Neighborhood Technology
2125 W. North Avenue
Chicago, IL 60647

Fax to 773-278-3840 or email to bridget@cnt.org

No phone calls please.

Labor Day in Chicago

2009-09-07T09:57:00.003-05:00

While most of us are happy to have the day off for Labor Day, it's a bit bittersweet- seeing as Labor Day signals the end to summer. But don't fret! Instead, grab an I-GO car and jet off to one of the Chicago Tribune's many ideas for Labor Day fun:

African Festival of the Arts: Experience African and African-American culture through music, fine arts and cuisine at this annual festival. 10 a.m.-10 p.m. in Washington Park, 51st Street and Cottage Grove Avenue. $10-$15, $5 for seniors and children younger than 12; 773-955-2787, africanfestivalchicago.org

Bike Obama tour: See the sights President Barack Obama frequented in the Chicago area, including his Hyde Park neighborhood. The two-hour, 6-mile bike tour begins at 10 a.m. at the Hyde Park Art Center, 5020 S. Cornell Ave. $32, $18 for children younger than 12 (bike and helmet available). An extended Stimulus Package tour is 22 miles in four hours (departs at 9 a.m., $43) and includes the Museum Campus and Grant Park. A 10 percent discount is offered for online reservations, R.S.V.P. required; 312-915-0995, bobbysbikehike.com

Summer Tropical Flower Show: Maybe your garden didn't turn out as planned (rain is good, no?), but this display of tropical plants, including begonias and hibiscus, should brighten your day. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. at Lincoln Park Conservatory, 2391 N. Stockton Drive. Free; 312-742-7736; and 9 a.m.-5 p.m. at Garfield Park Conservatory, 300 N. Central Park Ave. Free; 312-746-5100

Dinosaurs Alive!: A display of animatronic dinosaurs -- including a 60-foot-long and 30-foot-high replica of the Ruyang Yellow River dinosaur -- at Brookfield Zoo has got the awesomeness. And there are all the other wonderful animal habitats to check out too. 9:30 a.m.-6 p.m. at Brookfield Zoo, 3300 Golf Rd., Brookfield. $17, $11 for seniors and children ages 3-11 (includes regular zoo admission), $8 for parking; 708-485-0263, czs.org

The Last Fling: Here's how to send summer off with a bang: a spaghetti-eating contest, Big Wheel races, car show, parade and more. 10 a.m.-6 p.m. at Naperville Riverwalk, 100 W. Jackson Ave., Naperville. Free (main stage free Monday); 630-961-4143, lastfling.org

Bristol Renaissance Faire: It's the last chance to get all medieval, as Bristol closes its season with a juggling/comedy/fire show, street theater and more. 10 a.m.-7 p.m. at Bristol Renaissance Faire, 12550 120th Ave., Kenosha, Wis. $16.95, $7.50 for children 5-12, children younger than 5 free; 847-395-7773, renfair.com

Arlington Park: A day of thoroughbred racing will include a Pucker Up Stakes for 3-year-old fillies and a Stars and Stripes handicap for older horses. There's more than racing going on, with The Brave performing on the Miller Lite Band Stage. Gates open at 11:15 a.m. at Arlington Park, 2200 W. Euclid, Arlington Heights. $6-$7 general admission, children younger than 17 free when accompanied by an adult; 847-385-7427, arlingtonpark.com

Chicago Premium Outlets: Kids -- according to kids -- can never have enough back-to-school clothes. And if you're looking for outfits for the ones who have grown a size over the summer, already-discounted merchandise at the 120 outlet stores will have additional reductions of 25 percent to 65 percent. 9 a.m.-9 p.m. at Chicago Premium Outlets, 1650 Premium Outlets Blvd., Aurora; 630-585-2200, premiumoutlets.com

Find the cheapest gas in Chicago

2009-08-24T10:19:00.006-05:00

If you have a minute to spare after booking your I-GO reservation, you should check out this great website, Chicago Gas Prices. Not only can you find the cheapest spots to refuel around the city, but you also have the chance to win prizes (like $250 in prepaid gas!) if you join in the effort by reporting fuel prices you see while out and about in your I-GO vehicle.

The website also provides other handy tools such as: fuel price maps (both local and national), fuel logbooks, fuel tax info, mobile widgets and more.

Who's got the cheapest gas in the Chicagoland area today? As of this blog post, that honor belongs to the Sam's Club in Northlake on 141 W. North Ave & Railroad Ave., offering $2.61 per gallon. As you can see in the local price snapshot below, gas was much more expensive this time last year.

I-GO nominated in Chicago Innovation Awards

2009-08-20T12:13:00.004-05:00

I-GO Car Sharing, for the second consecutive year, has been nominated in the annual Chicago Innovation Awards.

Want the lowdown on the accolade? From their site:

Established in 2002, the Chicago Innovation Awards shine a bright light on the creative spirit of Chicago by focusing attention on the most significant new products and services introduced in the region. The ten winners each year are innovations that uniquely fill unmet needs, spark a competitive response in the marketplace, exceed market expectations, achieve financial success, and improve people’s lives. They emerge from the public, private, and nonprofit sectors. Most importantly, the Chicago Innovation Awards remind is that innovation is thriving in America’s heartland.

There are 75 nominees covering a wide array of innovators—big and small, public and private. Sifting through the list is an eye-opener: It's encouraging to see how many enterprising innovators are on the cusp of great ideas in Chicago. Eat your tech-nerd heart out, Silicon Valley.

Best of all: You can vote for I-GO to win! Not that we'd twist your arm on the way to the virtual ballot box. But, c'mon, our particular take on car sharing—partnering with mass transit; extending alternative, sustainable transportation to ALL neighborhoods; only using low-emission, fuel-efficient vehicles (including dozens of hybrids and two bona fide plug-ins)—is worth a spot atop the podium, eh?

Reserve an I-GO car, win Million Dollar Quartet tickets!

2009-08-18T12:06:00.002-05:00

Reserve an I-GO Prius in the last two weeks of August and you could find a pair of free tickets to Chicago’s hit rock ‘n’ roll musical, Million Dollar Quartet, in the glovebox! Or you may discover free cast-recording CDs and other prizes stashed in the dash!

Click here for for details!

Paris says "Oui" to car sharing

2009-08-14T10:48:00.004-05:00

Paris' mayor just announced the city wants to adopt car sharing in the wake of its successful bike sharing program.

Not only that: They want to start off with thousands of electric cars and a network of charging stations.

Isn't the sort of bold strategy Chicago ought to be implementing if it wants to demonstrate how green it is to the international Olympic committee? Especially since the city is banking on its environmental initiatives to win the 2016 Summer Games.

That said, the Chicago 2016 committee's "Blue-Green Games" agenda is still quite laudable—if they can pull it off.

Not taking sides on that bid—there are pros and cons to it in so many ways. Just noting that Paris seems more progressive in this regard at the moment.

Fuel efficiency anemic since Model T

2009-08-07T11:34:00.004-05:00

According to a new study by researchers at the University of Michigan: "The average fuel efficiency of the US vehicle fleet has risen by just 3 miles per gallon since the days of the Ford Model T, and has barely shifted at all since 1991."

At least we stopped wearing bowler hats and bustles, though.

I-GO in the blogosphere

2009-08-06T17:05:00.003-05:00

I-GO Car Sharing recently got two nice shoutouts on blogs. Here's one from a member who's intent on living a car-free life (with us as the exception). And we're also mentioned in a post on car sharing on Allstate Insurance's blog Vehicle Vibes.

Thanks, folks!

I-GO adds Honda Insights to fleet

2009-08-06T16:26:00.003-05:00

I-GO just added four brand-new Honda Insights to the fleet. Pictured here: the Insight at 2350 N. Racine (at Fullerton). Took it out for a bit today. Really nice ride. Sooo clean. (Let's keep it that way!) Liked the "Eco Assist" button function, which lets you tweak the electric-to-gas ratio even more. This car sits next to a Prius and guess what? I couldn't tell the diff until I got within five feet.

How about "Cash for Car Sharing"?

2009-08-04T11:34:00.004-05:00

Cash for Clunkers addendum: the Dept of Transportation estimates an average increased fuel efficiency of 15.8mpg to 25.4mpg so far. See sidebar figures in today's NY Times coverage. Forget about the funding debate for a sec. How about "cash for car sharing"?

Or really push the envelope and require folks to buy plug-ins, hybrids and, when feasible, EVs like the Nissan Leaf or Chevy Volt. 25mpg? Meh. It's anemic compared to the new Prius and InSight, excellent vehicles that double that figure and are already mass produced.

Shop and Save in Chicago!

2009-08-04T10:43:00.006-05:00

Good news for I-GO members-- five new local businesses have joined our Chi-Town Rewards Program! You can now save some dough simply by flashing your I-GO Smartcard at the following businesses:

Green Home Experts
www.GHExperts.com
708.660.1443
OFFER: 10% off all in-stock items up to $100

Rent Smart Chicago
www.RentSmartChicago.com
773.275.2700
OFFER: $100 off first months rent

ENRG Fitness Chicago
www.enrgfitnesschicago.com
847.767.9567 OFFER: 10% off first month

Ridge Art
www.ridgeart.com
708.848.4062
OFFER: 20% off

Chicago Energy Consultants
www.ChicagoEnergyConsultants.com
773.969.6697
OFFER: 10% off Home Energy Audit

Nissan turns over a new Leaf

2009-08-04T10:41:00.002-05:00

To follow up on our previous post: Here's the skinny on Nissan's new EV, a four-door hatchback called the Leaf that boasts a 100-mile range on a full charge, charges to 80% in 30 minutes, and exceeds 90mph.

Nissan's biz model is a smart ecosystem approach: partnering with battery-charging network entrepreneurs (Better Place) and green government initiatives.

Nissan's EV prepares for its debutante closeup

2009-07-30T11:31:00.006-05:00

Nissan's planning to unveil its new zero-emissions electric vehicle at its HQ on Aug. 2. Check out the performance stats overview on its site. The car is counting down to lift-off in 2010.

Don't know if it's just opportunistic green brand marketing or earnest enviro stewardship, but I'm liking the mission statement here:

Nissan has been addressing a wide range of actions under "Blue Citizenship" which represents the company's desire to protect the blue planet and to be a corporate citizen that can live symbiotically with people and society. These efforts range from such global issues as the environmental protection to contribution to communities, promoting diversity and making personal mobility available to as many people as possible. Nissan continues promoting the development of zero-emission vehicles based on the "Blue Citizenship" spirit by introducing effective technologies, products and services into the market.

Dancing (and a whole lot more) in the street!

2009-07-29T14:54:00.006-05:00

Have some free time this Saturday, August 1st? (August already? Where did the summer go?!) The Active Transportation Alliance, formally the Chicagoland Bicycle Federation, is holding a free, 8-mile "Open Streets" event stretching from Logan Square to Little Village.

The event will run from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. and feature a variety of activities, including music, art activities, children's games, workout classes and much more. Even better: It's a free event and there's no registration, so you can join in at any point along the route! For more info, you can also call them at (312) 377-5727.

Check out this interesting video on the Open Streets initiative:

I-GO at the Chicago Criterium

2009-07-29T14:32:00.002-05:00

I-GO provided the only two pace/SAG (support and gear) cars in the Chicago Criterium bike race this past Sunday, July 26. What a spectacle this race is! For those who missed it, it's an annual event in Grant Park, so you'll get another chance next year.

Renault greenlights electric-car web site

2009-07-27T11:07:00.007-05:00

Renault has a new electric-car web site.

The automaker's partners include Nissan and—more intriguingly—Bay Area-based Better Place, with which it intends to partner on battery-charging stations.

And Renault wants to produce a range of 100% electric vehicles, rejecting the current business model of playing up one marquee flagship car (i.e. Prius, Insight, Volt). Their Z.E. (as in "zero emissions") concept car is greener than green, far beyond the electric motor. We're digging the acid-green, neon windows, which help provide insulation and save energy, and temperature-regulating solar panels.

Voiture électrique? We say, toss in a baguette and bottle of Bordeaux, and we'll give it a shot. Seriously, though: It's fascinating to see the electric vehicle market begin to take shape internationally.

I-GO partners with Chicago Park District on car sharing

2009-07-23T16:12:00.004-05:00

I-GO Car Sharing and the Chicago Park District have partnered to bring car-sharing vehicles to Chicago parks around town.

Check out this sweet video the Park District produced on the program. Thanks, CPD!

Green Dream Group goes 100% I-GO

2009-07-23T13:32:00.002-05:00

One of I-GO's hippest business members, home energy auditors Green Dream Group (we wrote about them in our May newsletter), called to say they're going entirely with I-GO cars for their client calls.

Reason: Car sharing complements their business model and mission and, they say, impresses clients when one of their tech team members makes a house call.

We say: You rock, Green Dream Group! Thanks for the support!

Check out this vid clip to learn more about how this young, entrepreneurial, local firm can save you big-time on home energy costs:

I-GO slips a disc

2009-07-17T11:06:00.003-05:00

How to spin this one? We'll be dodging discs this weekend at the Ultimate Chicago Sandblast co-ed ultimate Frisbee tourney at Montrose Beach. Stop by and say hi, bring a friend, and we'll give you a break on an I-GO membership sign-up: just $25 (50 bones off the normal price). The Frisbees may be plastic, but we're serving our deal up on a silver platter.

I-GO begins suburban expansion

2009-07-14T15:07:00.004-05:00

We have officially kicked off our suburban expansion program with the addition of two new cars in Oak Park and Evanston. We also added two new cars in Chicago: one in Streeterville and one in Pilsen. Three of these four cars are brand spankin' new 2010 Honda Insights. Haven't seen one yet? Make sure to check it out!

Evanston: 1800 Maple Ave
2010 Red Honda Insight; Car #4427

View Larger Map

Oak Park: 833 S. Euclid
2010 Silver Honda Insight; Car #4416

View Larger Map

Streeterville: 441 E Ontario
2009 Blue Honda Element; Car #4413

View Larger Map

Pilsen: 828 W 19th Street
2010 Silver Honda Civic; #4430

View Larger Map

Are these convenient locations for you? Post below and make your opinion heard!

Stay on the lookout for more I-GO cars in Skokie, Oak Park, and Evanston as we continue the first phase of suburban expansion.

I-GO at 2009 Chicago Pride Parade

2009-07-14T13:51:00.003-05:00

When do diversity, equality, and conscientious green mobility go together? When I-GO Car Sharing dives headlong into the Chicago Pride Parade festivities. We rode in the parade (once again) and handed out (once again) T-shirts reading "I-GO for Guys" and "I-GO for Girls." Whatever your speed or inclination, all agreed: Unity ruled the day.

Check out a vid we shot of the day's upbeat action:

Twin Cities-to-Chicago car sharing connection

2009-06-25T10:43:00.007-05:00

Here's a nice little plug for I-GO by a transplanted-Chicagoan blogging in Minneapolis. Maybe she can avail herself of Hour Car, a St. Paul-based car-sharing service that's remarkably similar to I-GO's business model. They were also launched by a non-profit green org, Neighborhood Energy Connections, that, like I-GO's parent org Center for Neighborhood Technology (man, even the names sound alike), is invested in energy conservation initiatives and policy work.

One of Hour Car's staff stopped by our Wicker Park office this week since he was visiting Chicago. Smart guy. They've got two full-time staffers and are growing their biz and fleet steadily. They're also focused on low-emission vehicles.

Hour Car publishes a blog, too, and posted an item on I-GO yesterday.

Thanks, Hour Car compatriots.

And FYI to all I-GO members: If you're visiting the Twin Cities, you can use Hour Car's fleet without having to pay a membership sign-up fee. That benefit also applies to our non-profit car-sharing sister companies in Philadelphia (PhillyCarShare) and San Francisco (City CarShare).

Tell 'em I-GO sent you.

Sneak preview of Chevy Volt battery technology

2009-06-23T10:47:00.003-05:00

Curious about the Chevy Volt's prospects? Check out this YouTube vid posted by a tech fan. GM's battery lab manager gives a demo of the latest battery pack they've designed. Toyota and Honda are still the hares to GM's tortoise, but this battery - custom-designed and to be built in Michigan at a new GM lab - is impressive. Not to mention HUGE.

Question is: How much will the Volt cost? The guy who shot that vid thinks it's possible that, with gov't incentives, the Volt could compete with a fully loaded 2010 Prius. If that were the case, would more of us be inclined to buy an American electric car to help support our ailing domestic industry?

I-GO has been looking at vehicles like the Ford Fusion hybrid, a mid-size sedan, and if the Volt were cost-efficient enough for our membership organization, we'd consider that one, too, and be able to help on two fronts: advocating for clean cars and American automakers.

Any second opinions on that notion?

Suburban car culture is the carbon culprit

2009-06-22T11:33:00.003-05:00

Props to Center for Neighborhood Technology (I-GO's parent org) for the Chicago Sun-Times coverage today of its CO2 mapping study - which proves suburban transportation usage is a far worse carbon culprit than folks living in dense urban areas. I-GO Car Sharing gets a mention, too.

Car Free Chicago

2009-06-21T12:51:00.003-05:00

I recently discovered a helpful new website- www.carfreechicago.com. Carfree Chicago is a community-built resource that aims to take the guess work out of carfree living while promoting responsible transportation choices. The site is structured as a community blog; it is written by carfree Chicagoans for other carfree Chicagoans.

It's a great site for the both the carfree and for drivers who drive out of necessity but prefer not to when possible. The site is a great resouce that covers such topics as alternative transit options (car sharing, bikes, Amtrak, Metra, Pace, etc...), carfree excursions, how to deal with going carfree with a family or when grocery shopping and many other relevant topics related to carfree living. Check it out and let us know what you think!

I-GO saddles up for Bike to Work Week

2009-06-18T11:54:00.005-05:00

The rain hasn't put a damper on I-GO & CNT's Bike to Work Week efforts. We were champs in our small biz category last year in this citywide challenge promoted by our pals at the Active Transportation Alliance (formerly the Chicagoland Bicycle Federation). New this year: We've got a tandem "taxi bike" in our office atrium to shuttle employees who don't have bikes of their own. Tomorrow, we'll be at the culminating rally in Daley Plaza. Pedal on over and give us a honk.

Ray-of-Hope LaHood reinventing transportation model

2009-06-18T11:06:00.003-05:00

Above, from left to right: CNT Vice President of Policy Jacky Grimshaw, I-GO Car Sharing CEO Sharon Feigon, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood, and CNT CEO Kathryn Tholin at the Union League Club in Chicago, where LaHood spoke in May.

Who knew what to think of Ray LaHood when Obama appointed him? Turns out, writes Kaid Benfield of the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Secretary of Transportation is quite progressive, indeed, and is adopting the integrated sustainability model long advocated by I-GO's parent org, the Center for Neighborhood Technology—apparent in such current projects as CNT's Housing & Transportation Affordability Index. LaHood talks about "location efficiency"; so do we. Seems like a Ray of hope to us.

Chicago's I-GO Car Sharing reviewed in Wall Street Journal

2009-06-11T11:56:00.003-05:00

The Wall Street Journal's "Cranky Consumer" columnist reviewed four car sharing companies in today's paper. The column is a Consumer Reports-type deal that makes apples-to-apples comparisons, hopefully enabling consumers to make better choices. I-GO Car Sharing was the only local, nonprofit service included; the others are Zipcar, Connect by Hertz (the rental car company recently launched a car-sharing service in select markets), and Mint, a recent start-up based in New York.

We're happy to report that, with the exception of a half-eaten French fry left on the floor by the member who had our car before the reporter's reservation, I-GO came out smelling more or less like roses.

The Zipcar was "filthy," apparently, and while we're inclined to gloat, it must be said that all car-sharing companies can commiserate with that. We all have cleaning services. I-GO's cleaning service is the ultra-green-friendly WashMe-EnviGreen, a Matteson-based progressive service run by dynamic entrepreneur Tanya Killian. Every car in our fleet is cleaned like clock-work, inside and out, at least every two weeks. But in a national culture that's so used to service-oriented business models that don't necessitate customer responsibility, it's easy to point a finger at us—or the other companies reviewed in this piece—and not realize that a communal business model is at work here.

We've got 12,000 members. And we love 'em all. We just launched a new mobile reservations site that's the latest, greatest member benefit at I-GO. But we need members to alert us to dirty cars, too, so that we can pinpoint recurring problems and address the situation with members whose trash is the next person's annoyance. It's not like we want our members to be ratting each other out, but, well, that's sort of the nature of the beast when you've got 12,000 people sharing 200 vehicles. We do our best to keep up with the cleaning, but we absolutely need to function as a community that works together for the betterment of the whole.

Public getting another kick in the gas

2009-06-09T11:42:00.003-05:00

The analysts can't agree on the cause, but here's an ugly fact: Americans are now pumping out a billion bucks a day to refuel their cars according to an article today in the New York Times.

All the more reason to choose car sharing as your go-to transportation option—especially in Illinois, where the price tags at the pump are among the highest in the nation.

Automotively speaking, sometimes all you can do is cry about it—over a slice of the Onion:

Autoworkers Compete to Keep Jobs, Livelihoods on New Reality Show

I-GO Car Sharing launches mobile reservations site

2009-06-08T12:55:00.003-05:00

I-GO has always been about mobile convenience. But now we're really on the move.

Smartphone fans, take a deep breath, tilt your touch screens and flex those thumbs: I-GO now has an online reservation site configured for iPhone, BlackBerry, and other web-enabled mobile devices.

Bookmark it, baby:

http://reservations.igocars.org/mobile

Keep in mind it's designed for phones, not your desktop monitor, though you can get a basic idea of its functions on the latter. (It just won't look half as cool.) iPhone users can also try out a desktop demo here.

Sweet, huh? We're calling it "I-GO on the go."

Now it's exceptionally easy to log in to your online account any time, anywhere. The mobile site is a distilled, highly intuitive version of our online reservation system, customized with larger search buttons and easy-to-read drop-down menus. Search for cars by date and time, location preferences, vehicle type, and amenities just as you would on your desktop computer.

Needless to say, grabbing an I-GO car in one of the 30-plus neighborhoods we serve is now literally in the palm of your hand.

The mobile site also makes the Chicago Card Plus/I-GO Card—I-GO's joint smartcard initiative with CTA—that much more convenient. Reserve an I-GO car within seconds that's located at or near an upcoming stop on a CTA rail line or bus route. Next stop: I-GO.

Please note: There is a $2.99 charge the first time I-GO members use the mobile site to make, extend, cancel, or release a reservation. This will help us offset the cost of building, maintaining, and adding future enhancements to to this special feature. The fee will appear on your next month's invoice, and all further use of the mobile site is entirely free.

I-GO on the go. Now the city's your car-sharing oyster.

The long and winding GM road doesn't dead-end here

2009-06-03T10:38:00.001-05:00

Laughter is the best medicine. But $20 billion in federal aid is even better:

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart

M - Th 11p / 10c

BiG Mess

thedailyshow.com

Daily Show
Full Episodes

Economic Crisis

Political Humor

We're pulling for GM, the American auto industry, and its future green machines. But that has to be coupled with investment in efficient, sustainable public transportation (i.e., high-speed rail, hydrogen fuel-cell buses like the CTA uses), alternative energy sources (wind & solar power), advanced lithium-ion battery research, natural gas if your name is T. Boone Pickens, and, um, car sharing. Though, at I-GO, we'll settle for less than $20 billion. Wink, wink, nudge, nudge.

GM: Going...going...green?

2009-06-02T11:25:00.009-05:00

Interesting new website from GM in the wake of its ignominious Chapter 11 1,000 car pileup. We're crossing our fingers for the Chevy Volt—and all those laid-off workers who hopefully get retrained in the "leaner, greener, faster, smarter" GM promised in the slick vid posted on the site.

RIP, Hummer? Not so fast. Looks like the Schwartzenegger of U.S. automobiles will be pumping iron in China instead. But will future Hummer models get the green light? That's the electrifying question. There's an ironic metaphor somewhere in all this, but it eludes me at the moment.

New study compares emissions of city and suburban households

2009-05-27T11:20:00.005-05:00

At first glance, cities may appear to be a big source of the greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming. But new research by the nonprofit Center for Neighborhood Technology (CNT), which compares greenhouse gas emissions of city and suburban households, yields some surprising results.

CNT, which launched I-GO Car Sharing in 2002, looked at emissions of carbon dioxide, a key greenhouse gas, stemming from household vehicle travel in 55 metropolitan areas across the U.S. When measured on a per household basis, it found that the transportation-related emissions of people living in cities and compact neighborhoods can be nearly 70% less than those living in suburbs. See how this compares in your region. (Click on “Household Auto Greenhouse Gas Emissions.”)

“Cities are more location-efficient—meaning key destinations are closer to where people live and work,” said Scott Bernstein, CNT’s President. “They require less time, money, fuel and greenhouse gas emissions for residents to meet their everyday travel needs. People can walk, bike, car-share, take public transit. So residents of cities and compact communities generate less CO₂ per household than people who live in more dispersed communities, like many suburbs and outlying areas.

“If you’re deciding where to live, consider moving to an urban area. You’ll help fight global warming by emitting less CO₂. And you’re likely to drive less, so you’ll spend less on transportation, saving up to $5,000 annually.”

CNT’s research shows that average transportation costs vary greatly depending on location, from a low of 14% of area household median income in transit-rich, compact communities, to highs of 28% or more in exurban areas where employment, retail, and other amenities are more dispersed.

CNT focused on vehicle travel as a source of emissions, since research shows that transportation accounts for 28% of all greenhouse gases in the U.S. Its work compares the conventional per-acre analysis of greenhouse gas emissions due to vehicle travel with a new per-household view in each metropolitan area it studied. The results suggest that, due to their density and transportation alternatives, cities are a central part of the climate change solution.

The research is an outgrowth of CNT’s Housing + Transportation Affordability Index, which examines several aspects of location efficiency. One is the true cost of housing when household transportation costs are factored in, which vary widely by location. Together, transportation and housing can account for more than 60% of annual household expenses for some working families living in outlying areas—significantly impacting their cost of living and quality of life. The site also illuminates the environmental cost of housing location, which includes impacts like household carbon dioxide emissions.

Since its launch a year ago, the H+T Affordability Index has been expanded to show current CO₂ maps, as well as the impact of location and gasoline costs on household budgets between the years 2000 and 2008. It has also been redesigned and enhanced for ease of use and data access.

With generous funding from the Rockefeller Foundation, the index will be expanded to cover more than 330 metropolitan areas in the U.S. later this year.

Founded in 1978, CNT is a Chicago-based nonprofit organization that works nationally to advance urban sustainability by researching, inventing and testing strategies that use resources more efficiently and equitably. Its programs focus on climate, energy, natural resources, transportation, and community development. CNT is one of eight nonprofits selected from around the world to be recognized by a 2009 MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions, from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.

New I-GO Chi-Town Rewards Member: Healthy Green Goods

2009-05-26T16:29:00.006-05:00

If you ever find yourself with some time to kill in Evanston, you should check out Healthy Green Goods, the most recent local business to offer I-GO members a discount by joining our Chi-Town Rewards program.

It's simple! All you have to do is flash your I-GO smartcard and you'll receive 10% off your entire purchase! Healthy Green Goods carries a wide array of truly safe and organic products. Need help finding toxin-free, eco-friendly products for everyday living? Healthy Green Goods can help. Swing by their store in Evanston or check them out online.

Healthy Green Goods:
702 Main Street
Evanston, IL 60202

View Larger Map

I-GO Car Sharing now on Facebook and Twitter

2009-05-20T16:36:00.002-05:00

Want to stay connected to all that's going on here at I-GO Car Sharing? Join our Facebook page and follow us on Twitter! You'll be the first to hear about new car locations, member benefit updates, event invites, calls for volunteers and a whole lot more!

I-GO at Whole Foods Market's Lincoln Park store opening

2009-05-20T13:44:00.003-05:00

Whole Foods Market opened its jaw-dropping new Lincoln Park store on Wed., May 20, and I-GO was there for the ribbon-cutting ceremony with Mayor Daley and the Whole Foods Market brass. I-GO is one of WFM's community partners, and the store has graciously provided us with a spectacular reserved parking space in its front lot. Needless to say, given both companies' green missions, we put a Prius there.

The new store is insane -- and we mean that in the best possible way. Huge, yes. The third biggest WFM store worldwide. But that's not what's impressive. Sushi bar, wine and cheese tasting bar, a healthy grill bar, a spacious bodycare and wellness area, rows and rows of reusable earth-friendly shopping bags...and a whole halibut in the seafood section that was so ginormous we thought it might wriggle free of its display case and jump in the Chicago River, which runs right past the store. One of our fave features: an automated, temperature-controlled wine machine by a California-based vendor called Napa Technology that serves different sized pours in cups. This ain't your grandparents' supermarket, that's for sure.

The I-GO parking location here couldn't be more fitting. We now have cars at five WFM stores, and besides the fact that we're both eco-oriented and support local community initiatives, it's important to note that grocery shopping remains the number-one reason people use I-GO cars. That's synergy you can bottle and serve again and again and again.

Check out our Flickr slide show of pix we snapped at the event:

I-GO parks Prius at new Whole Foods

2009-05-19T16:27:00.003-05:00

I-GO has the only car-sharing vehicle at the new Whole Foods opening tomorrow at 1550 N. Kingsbury. Appropriately enough, it's a Prius. I-GO is a community partner of Whole Foods, and that's appropriate in more ways than one: Grocery shopping is the number one reason our members use I-GO cars, and both companies are eco-conscious and care about supporting local communities.

Ribbon cutting is at 9am. Stop by and check it out. The new store is impressive: the third largest Whole Foods in the world.

I-GO does Green Fest

2009-05-18T13:14:00.007-05:00

I-GO Car Sharing waded into the eco throng with elan at this year's Green Festival at Navy Pier this past weekend. Among the vegans, home energy auditors, eco apparel purveyors, climate action advocates and plenty more, our car sharing booth held plenty of interest. As did the three-wheeled electric Zap cars and scooters parked next to us, which were George Jetson cool.

Slinging sales pitches at the I-GO booth was fun work at Green Fest. Car sharing's cost-saving, convenient virtues sell themselves. (In the background of the photo above right you can catch a glimpse of the all-electric Zap three-wheelers, street-legal eco-lectable rides made by a California-based company. We question whether former Conan the Barbarian Gov. Arnold could shoehorn himself into one, though.)

At left, pictured, was one of our fave installations at the fest: Chicago-based Working Bikes' demo of how their donated wheels help villagers in Africa and Central America do everything from power blenders to irrigate gardens. (We're not so sure about the functional application of the armillary-sphere-looking thing here with the toy bike circumnavigating its globe. But it sure is cool.)

Discount I-GO memberships at Green Fest

2009-05-15T13:04:00.002-05:00

Green Festival
Saturday & Sunday May 16th & 17th, 10am-7pm (Sat.) & 11am-6pm (Sun.)
Navy Pier, 600 E. Grand
This is the big one, folks: the annual nationally touring environmental juggernaut known as Green Fest. The fest’s Chicago stop will include the works and then some: 125 renowned authors, leaders, and educators; 350 eco-friendly businesses comprising a unique marketplace; workshops, green films, kids’ activities, live music; and delicious, organic, vegetarian cuisine.

I-GO will again have a booth (#1328) at the fest, and we encourage you to drop by. It’s always an enlightening event - and should be even more so this year with our nation's and the world's belated embrace of progressive environmental industry and economic incentives.

I-GO will be offering a special discount on memberships: just $25—a savings of $50 off the normal price! Current members can also earn $25 in driving credits for every new member that names them as a referral on their application form.

Go to the Green Fest website for more info.

It's just $10-$15 admission - less than a Hollywood action flick and box of buttered popcorn, and far better for you.

Higher gas prices = More car sharing customers

2009-05-14T16:22:00.005-05:00

We saw it last summer when gas prices soared into the stratosphere, and we may see it again: a huge increase in I-GO applicants attracted by one undeniably attractive benefit: Car sharing members don't pay for gas. Ever.

Good piece in the Chicago Tribune yesterday analyzing the prospects for a repeat of last year's rocketing fuel prices at the pump.

We're not rooting for the oil robber barons of the world, mind you, or the speculators hoping to ride their coattails. But whatever the reasons, fossil fuels are environmentally disastrous no matter how you slice and dice their economic impact.

We say: Shed a car, share one instead.

Car sharing gets short end of stick shift on Today Show

2009-05-14T10:17:00.004-05:00

A Today Show segment that aired today was originally pitched to I-GO as a wide-ranging piece on automotive cost-saving tactics—including, prominently, car sharing. But it morphed into something else: a piece on small, fuel-efficient cars, and how that represents a major psychological shift for Americans away from our beloved gas-guzzling muscle cars.

Stop the presses. There's breaking news for you.

I think the Today Show's NYC producers need to get out more. The shift to Priuses and other small, fuel-efficient and hybrid cars is old news. Though certainly we champion this trend, and hope it will continue. Car sharing: That's a fresh, new story with real teeth.

I-GO gets a shot of a Prius in Logan Square and a sign. Bob and Kennon, the I-GO members who took the time to be interviewed, ended up on the cutting-room floor. Bet they're bummed. Sorry, guys. Maybe the Today Show can reuse that footage in another piece. Not likely, but one can hope.

Last segment I saw before turning off the TV: Matt Lauer interviewing a 5-year-old chef making quesadillas.

Important stuff, folks.

Maybe next time we should come up with a kindergartner who fries Mexican food on the hood of an I-GO Honda Element.

Might just work.

Here's the vid clip:

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

I-GO Car Sharing featured on the Today Show tomorrow

2009-05-13T17:22:00.004-05:00

Be sure to tune in to NBC's Today Show tomorrow morning (5/14/09) between 8 a.m. and 9 a.m. to watch the feature on I-GO Car Sharing! If you miss it, you will be able to check it out by mid-morning here.

German suburb finds car-free life quite carefree

2009-05-13T13:21:00.012-05:00

Have you ever heard of Vauban, a small suburb in Germany? I hadn't until recently, but after reading an article in yesterday's New York Times—"In German Suburb, Life Goes On Without Cars"—I'm ready to pack my bags and hop on the next plane there.

Vauban, completed in 2006, sits on the outskirts of Freiburg, near the French and Swiss borders. Street parking, driveways and home garages are generally forbidden, and Vauban's streets are completely car-free, except for the main thoroughfare and a few streets on the outskirts of the suburb.

You may be asking yourself, How is this working out for the 5,500 residents of Vauban? Quite well, it seems. From the article:

The town is long and relatively narrow, so that the tram into Freiburg is an easy walk from every home. Stores, restaurants, banks and schools are more interspersed among homes than they are in a typical suburb. Most residents...have carts that they haul behind bicycles for shopping trips or children's play dates. For trips to stores like IKEA or the ski slopes, families buy cars together or use communal cars rented out by Vauban's car-sharing club.

Moreover, parents in Vauban rave about the safety that goes along with having no cars on the streets. Children can run free without their parents fearing for their safety as they would if their kids were playing on a busy street corner. Check out this interesting slideshow of Vauban.

Vauban is part of a growing suburban trend many are referring to as "smart planning." In the U.S., the EPA is beginning to promote "car reduced" communities and experts expect public transport serving suburbs to play a much larger role in a new six-year federal transportation bill to be approved this year. Currently, most zoning laws in the U.S. still require two parking spaces per residential unit. Hopefully, Vauban's success will lead to many more car-reduced cities and suburbs.

Adler Planetarium joins I-GO Car Sharing's Chi-Town Rewards Program!

2009-05-12T14:25:00.004-05:00

Adler Planetarium is the most recent organization to join our great member benefit program Chi-Town Rewards! As an I-GO member, you can simply flash your I-GO smartcard and receive two-for-one admission to the Planetarium. Not a bad deal, eh?

Adler Planetarium
1300 S. Lake Shore Dr.
312.922.7827
www.adlerplanetarium.org
OFFER: 2-for-1 general admission

Mayor Daley nabs #5 spot on Grist's "15 Green-Leaning Mayors"

2009-05-06T10:58:00.004-05:00

Grist recently released their list of "15 Green-Leaning Mayors", and Chicago's very own, Richard M. Daley, nabbed the fifth spot. They cite Daley's green-roof program (the most extensive in the country), sustainable redevelopment & landscaping projects, and his emphasis on renewable energy as his strong points. The article also mentioned Chicago's bid for the 2016 summer Olympics, stating that it "hinges on the event being the greenest Olympics in history."

The four mayors that topped Daley are: Michael Bloomberg (New York City), Greg Nickels (Seattle), Gavin Newsom (San Francisco), and Ed Malloy (Fairfield, Indiana). While the list is hardly complete, it does give a good indication of the vast geographical diversity in local climate leadership today.

What do you think? Did Mayor Daley deserve the #5 spot?

City of Winnipeg requires car sharing program added to condo development

2009-05-05T09:34:00.003-05:00

Car Sharing has become the key to success for a condo development currently under way in Winnipeg, Canada. In fact, the City of Winnipeg is insisting that Stonebridge Development Corp. Ltd. incorporate a car sharing program into the development, something that has never before been required in Winnipeg, and Stonebridge Development has agreed.

Michael Robinson, a senior city planner, has said that if this car sharing proposal is successful, more will likely follow. Robinson also noted that the incorporation of car sharing programs into condo developments has already happened in Vancouver, Canada and Edinburgh, Scotland. It's clear to see which side of the fence the city of Winnipeg falls on in regards to the growing debate on owning vs. sharing a vehicle! Hopefully, this will soon become the trend rather than an exception.

Sharing vs. Owning: The effects of car sharing

2009-05-04T08:43:00.007-05:00

Ian Sacs, of Planetizen, recently reported on the effects of car sharing versus car ownership, and what do you know: the outcomes all seem to have positive ramifications! According to Sacs, "Surveys of members, data from existing programs, and empirical evidence from several developments have shown that when a car share vehicle is available in a convenient location, and usually combined with transit access, a significant number of people make a decision that it is no longer necessary to own a car." He goes on to conclude that the ratio of car sharing vehicles to households that voluntarily give up a personal car is roughly six to 23. However, Sacs is quick to note that as car sharing becomes more widespread, this ratio could double.

Moreover, adding car sharing vehicles to a development can significantly reduce demand for parking and, in turn, reduce construction costs. Although, Sacs also points out that simply "sprinkling car share vehicles nearby or even on-site is typically not enough to realize an appreciable reduction in private vehicle ownership. Rather, the developer must market car sharing as a feature" and include incentives to join—such as reduced membership costs, driving credits and so forth.

One of the less studied, yet equally important, effects of car sharing versus car ownership is the effect it has on the total number of trips a person takes each year. If you own your own car, the more you drive it, the more value you get out of it. Whereas when sharing a car, and paying per use, you are more likely to consider the true cost of taking a car versus public transportation, biking or walking.

While Sacs does not ignore the fact that car sharing is currently only found in, and seems to be most applicable in, urban areas, he does appear hopeful for expansion of the industry into suburban areas as well. To illustrate this point, he highlights the number of suburban families that own a second or third car that they rarely use and insists that adding a car sharing vehicle in these suburban areas may "significantly reduce the total number of vehicles needed in that community."

Has the availability of car sharing in Chicago convinced you to ditch your wheels? To drive less? Let us know your car sharing experience!

SuperEco cites I-GO plug-ins

2009-05-01T11:27:00.003-05:00

It's a bird, it's a plane...no, it's SuperEco, a green blog that breaks down complex environmental topics into bite-size user-friendly advice.

We appreciate SuperEco's plug for I-GO's plug-ins as part of a post on the benefits of car sharing. Lisa Poisso notes: "Chicago's non-profit I-GO service even offers Prius electric hybrids."

Yep, we do. I-GO's Prius electric hybrids located at Millenium Park's north garage and at 900 S. Clark St. in the South Loop, and on a full charge they're more fuel-efficient than Ben Gordon lacing up another three-point shot over a leaping defender.

Hybrid electric plug-ins may represent the future of personal transportation. By combining that with a car-sharing organization model, it's a win-win situation on many levels.

I-GO and Chicago Park District join forces on car sharing

2009-04-29T11:49:00.002-05:00

I-GO Car Sharing and the Chicago Park District have partnered to bring four I-GO Car Sharing low-emission vehicles to four different park locations in the city. Beginning Friday, May 1, an I-GO car will be available at Horner Park, 2741 W. Montrose Ave. in Albany Park; Independence Park, 3945 N. Springfield Ave. in Old Irving Park; Margate Park, 4921 N. Marine Dr. in Uptown; and Ridge Park, 1817 W. 96th St. in Beverly. The cars herald a new relationship between I-GO and the CPD, with reserved parking spots generously provided by the latter.

“Car sharing makes a lot of sense for municipal agencies because it can reduce their fleet costs while providing a community benefit,” said Sharon Feigon, CEO of I-GO Car Sharing. “We are delighted to partner with the Park District so that Chicagoans can combine use of an I-GO vehicle with a visit to a park facility.”

The I-GO vehicles are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to any residents or Park District employees who become members of I-GO Car Sharing. They include: a silver Honda Fit (Horner Park); a red Toyota Prius hybrid (Independence Park); a silver Honda Civic hybrid (Margate Park); and a silver Toyota Scion xB (Ridge Park). I-GO members can search for these and any other I-GO car on I-GO’s website by address, neighborhood or vehicle type.

Scotland hopes to lead the drive towards all-electric vehicles

2009-04-29T11:11:00.004-05:00

The city of Glasgow is striving to become 'Electric Motor City' under an ambitious $250 million dollar plan to create, encourage and spread sustainable transportation options throughout Scotland. Glasgow has been selected as one of five urban areas in the UK to pilot the use of electric vehicles over the next two years. A plan to test 30 electric vehicles in Glasgow has just been given the go-ahead and the government also plans to give drivers who buy new all-electric vehicles a substantial tax break.

Electric vehicles are powered by battery-driven motors and therefore produce none of the polluting emissions that traditional cars produce. They also operate much more quietly than traditional vehicles. However, their range is limited without being recharged.

Environmental and transportation groups have applauded the plan, although they highlight the importance of using renewable and clean energy sources for the charging of the vehicles. Duncan McLaren, chief executive of Friends of the Earth Scotland, warns against using coal or nuclear sources of energy, and instead argues that, "We can use renewable power from the wind and tides." Seeing as Irfan Rabbani, executive member for the environment, has publicly announced the City Council's goal to make Glasgow "one of the most sustainable cities in Europe," this just may happen!

Want to check out an all-electric car for yourself? Check out this video on the new Chevy Volt, which will debut to the public in 2010.

Fast Company cites I-GO and CTA's transit smart card

2009-04-28T16:09:00.007-05:00

I-GO just got name-dropped by Fast Company magazine. The joint transit smart card we created with CTA—the Chicago Card Plus/I-GO Card—is one of the "12 Ideas to Build On" in the magazine's May issue article on progressive green cities.

Our smart card program gets props for linking various modes of transportation—buses, trains, and automobiles—highlighting the importance of an extended, connected public transportation network.

Sharon Feigon, CEO of I-GO Car Sharing, explains, "We want to integrate the public-transit systems and car sharing any way we can, and sharing one card is a good way to demonstrate that these different ideas are linked."

Other innovative ideas featured in the article include the Zero Landfill, Total Recycling program in Taipei, Taiwan; Tucson's Healthy City Initiative; the Mortgage Foreclosure Protection Program in Philadelphia; and Vancouver's Green Games initiative.

I-GO Car Sharing applauds Center for Neighborhood Technology, recipient of 2009 MacArthur Award

2009-04-28T08:36:00.011-05:00

I-GO Car Sharing is proud to be a part of the Center for Neighborhood Technology (CNT), which on Tuesday, April 28, was one of only eight organizations around the world to be selected for the 2009 MacArthur Award for Creative & Effective Institutions.

“The MacArthur Foundation has a long history of supporting organizations around the world like these that demonstrate the creativity, drive, and vision to make the world more just and peaceful,” said MacArthur President Jonathan Fanton. “These organizations may be small but their impact is tremendous. From protecting human rights to improving urban neighborhoods to conserving biodiversity, they are blazing new paths and finding fresh solutions to some of our most difficult challenges.”

It was CNT—one of the country's most venerable and innovative think tanks committed to urban sustainability issues—that originally launched I-GO Car Sharing in 2002. We remain closely attached to them to this day—both in terms of mission and literally: I-GO's HQ is housed in the same LEED-certified-platinum office building in Wicker Park.

The accolades weren't just from the MacArthur Foundation.

Illinois Governor Pat Quinn: “The Center for Neighborhood Technology is an innovative and creative organization that has maintained a strong focus on sustainability for over 30 years,” said Illinois Governor Pat Quinn. “The new technologies and ideas CNT has developed have kept Illinois at the forefront of green innovation, and this award is a fitting tribute.”

Sadhu Johnston, Chief Environmental Officer, City of Chicago: “Building a green city takes more than leadership from city government—it takes strong partners in the community. CNT has been and continues to be a valuable partner in the development and implementation of Chicago’s Climate Action Plan. Their in-depth analysis, along with their experience in implementing programs in transportation and energy, effectively demonstrate how and why cities are the solution to climate change.”

And that's just the tip of the iceberg.

We encourage everyone to read up on this remarkable, prescient organization that has been waaaaay ahead of the green curve since its founding three decades ago. Reinventing a "smart energy grid" for the nation may be the green topic du jour now. But CNT has been talking smart grid long before the greenwashing bandwagon hoppers grabbed ahold of those coattails.

Besides I-GO, they've created other green consumer programs:

CNT Energy’s Power Smart Pricing helps residential consumers cut energy costs and reduce their peak energy use through hourly price signals. The plan was adopted by ComEd and other electricity providers in the Midwest.

The Energy Savers program offers a one-stop shop for energy audits and loans to finance improvements that substantially reduce natural gas and electricity use in multifamily buildings. Reductions in energy consumption lower the operating costs of rental properties, keeping them affordable for the long term.

No doubt they'll keep innovating for another 30 years and beyond.

Congratulations CNT!

Bike Sharing

2009-04-26T09:55:00.002-05:00

"The fact is, we already have a zero-emission, efficient, great way to get around and it's called the bicycle and we just need to start providing for it,"
-Paul Steely White, Executive Director of Transportation Alternatives

You've heard of car sharing but have you heard of bike sharing? There are already successful bike sharing programs in Paris, Barcelona, London, Stockholm, Milan, Berlin, Munich, Vienna & Copenhagen- to name just a few. Hopefully it is only a matter of time before bike sharing starts spreading throughout the U.S. as well!

Below you can listen to a very interesting interview on last Friday's Brian Lehrer Show. Paul Steely White, Executive Director of Transportation Alternatives, discusses the possibility of introducing a bike sharing program in New York City.

Would you utilize a bike sharing service in Chicago? If not, why not? What would need to change in order to get you biking?

Climate Cycle: A fundraising ride to install solar panels on Chicago area schools

2009-04-26T08:44:00.003-05:00

Own a bike and free on Saturday, May 9th? If so, you should join us for a bike ride along the lake! Climate Cylce, a non-profit working to reduce global warming, is kicking off its inaugural bike-a-thon along Chicago's southern lakefront. The event will raise money to install solar panels on local public schools. Solar energy will help save both schools' and taxpayers' money by reducing schools' energy costs and also reduing their greenhouse gas emissions, the primary cause of global warming.

The event will feature two courses (a 12 mile and a 22 mile course) to choose from, both routes hug the lakefront and will be closed to vehicle traffic- not a bad way to spend a Saturday, huh? On top of the beautiful ride, there are some awesome prizes up for grabs- including free burritos for year from Chipotle!

According to Cimate Cycle, most schools spend more money on energy costs than computers and textbooks combined! Installing solar panels on local schools will save money, reuduce emissions and introduce a new generation to alternative energy and the importance of sustainability.

Click here to register today! All participants will recieve lunch, a t-shirt, goody bag and snacks. Hope we see you there!

Plugging in with Gov. Pat Quinn

2009-04-22T16:16:00.004-05:00

I-GO press conference
Originally uploaded by igocar sharing

I-GO held a press conference with Illinois Governor Pat Quinn and ComEd on April 21 at the James R. Thompson Center to announce I-GO's new plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. ComEd funded the plug-in conversions for the two cars. Representatives of the Center for Neighborhood Technology -- which launched I-GO in 2002 -- were on hand as well.

Gov. Quinn referred to car sharing as a significant movement in the state's emerging green infrastructure, and said he supports the proliferation of plug-ins across Chicago and the state. I-GO hopes to expand its plug-in program in Chicago and beyond as that green industry expands in the years to come.

Check out our Flickr photo gallery of the event!

Upcoming I-GO Car Sharing Events

2009-04-21T16:20:00.002-05:00

2nd Annual Auburn Gresham Earth Day Celebration
Thursday, April 23, 9am-noon
518 W. 79th

The Greater Auburn Gresham Development Corporation, in association with Alderman Latasha Thomas (17th Ward), and the Winneconna Lakes Improvement Association are hosting their 2nd Annual Earth Day Event to raise environmental awareness. I-GO reps will be there to demonstrate economical and environmental transportation alternatives.

University of Chicago Earth Fest
Friday, April 24, 11am-2pm
Rosenwald Building (Main Quad)

The Sustainability Council of the U of C is providing an opportunity for students and faculty to become acquainted with local business, organizations and other groups in Chicago. I-GO will be there spreading the good word. I-GO does not need any volunteer help for this event, but we’d love to see you if you’re in the area.

North Lake Shore Earth Day
Saturday, April 25, 9am-4:30pm
Loyola (Rogers Park Campus)

Loyola University Chicago and the communities of Andersonville, Edgewater, Ravenswood, Rogers Park, Uptown and West Ridge are hosting the 2nd North Lake Shore Earth day celebration. I-GO has been invited to help inform community members about global and local environmental issues such as clean air and energy alternatives, as well as practical, everday ways to green one’s home and business. I-GO is looking for a few volunteers to help staff this event. If you’d like to help out, please send Lauren an e-mail at lauren@igocars.org.

2 New Chi-Town Rewards Businesses

2009-04-20T14:25:00.005-05:00

I'm happy to announce that we've added 2 new, local businesses to our Chi-Town Rewards program this month! As I-GO members, you can now receive a discount when you visit the Adler Planetarium in Chicago's Museum Campus or the Green Grocer Chicago in West Town- pretty cool, huh?

Adler Planetarium
1300 S. Lake Shore Drive
www.adlerplanetarium.org
OFFER: 2 for 1 general admission

Green Grocer Chicago
1402 W. Grand Ave
www.greengrocerchicago.com
OFFER: 10% off total order

Plug-in Hybrids on I-GO Website

2009-04-09T10:50:00.005-05:00

I-GO now has a dedicated web page for its new Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicles. The page offers an overview of the converted Priuses (which were funded by ComEd), as well as tips and guidelines for I-GO members on how to reserve the cars, help maintain them in optimal condition, and operate them efficiently.

I-GO has two plug-in hybrids: one at Millennium Park's north garage, 201 E. Randolph St., and one in the South Loop at 900 S. Clark St. at the 900 AMLI residential tower's above-ground garage.

I-GO in the news

2009-04-08T11:33:00.002-05:00

Just spotted a couple of nice little plugs for I-GO on the web: one piece in Northwestern University's Medill Reports news wire on I-GO's imminent new car locations in Beverly and Old Irving Park and another on the overall benefits of car sharing and our joint transit smart card with CTA in Chicago Green Lifestyle Examiner.

I-GO adds plug-in hybrids to fleet

2009-04-06T11:49:00.004-05:00

Ever wonder what it'd be like to drive a car that gets 100 miles to the gallon?

You don't have to wait until 2015, the deadline President Barack Obama set in his New Energy For America plan to put one million plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) on the road. Thanks to generous support from ComEd, I-GO just added two plug-in hybrids to its fleet.

The cars—converted 2009 Toyota Priuses—are located in the Millennium Park north garage at 201 E. Randolph Dr., and at 900 S. Clark St. in the AMLI 900 residential tower's garage.

On a fully charged battery, these cars are capable of achieving fuel economy in excess of 100 mpg and reducing CO2 emissions by up to two-thirds over the standard Prius.

But don't take it from us. Try them out for yourselves.

To reserve the cars, I-GO members can simply select "Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid" on the Vehicles drop-down menu on our website after you log in. Or enter the vehicle ID numbers in the space below the menu: 4405 for 900 S. Clark, 4403 for Millennium Park, 201 E. Randolph.

Operating the cars is similar to that of a normal Prius (and if you need tips on that, check out the Toyota Prius Quick Guide in the I-GO Member Manual). The difference, of course, is that, before you can start the car you’ll need to unplug the extension cord from the back of the car and recoil it on the spool located next to the garage wall. (Please don’t leave the cord laying on the floor, where it may get run over and damaged.) Then, after you return the car and swipe out with your smart card, just remember to plug it back in.

Simple, right? Plug-in hybrids might be technological marvels, but fortunately, you don't have to be a rocket scientist to drive one.

You just have to be an I-GO member.

As the worm turns: Kitchen compost made easy

2009-03-22T10:57:00.009-05:00

Have you heard about composting with worms (vermicomposting) before but been afraid to give it a try? Worried about making a mess or just not liking the idea of worms in your house? Or would your kids love to learn all that worms can do to green your household? We've got the workshop just for you!

Urban Worm Girl, who just happens to be a ChiTown Rewards Member, is hosting a "Worm Composting Workshop" in Lincoln Park on Saturday April 4th from 1 - 2 p.m. Don't miss this special, hands-on opportunity to learn all about the process of composting with worms. You will also have the opportunity to buy supplies and set up your bin on-site: your worms will be ready to start working when you leave!

Come out and learn how to keep composting in the home easy, clean and fun for all. Call (312) 399-4725 or email Stephanie to reserve your spot today!

Car Ownership Costs Families Thousands

2009-03-19T11:52:00.004-05:00

From "Wheels," an editorial blog in the New York Times, yesterday:

"In 2007, a statistically average household, with an annual pretax family income of $63,091 and 1.9 vehicles, spent more on transportation than it did on clothing, health care and entertainment combined ($7,432)."

Here's the full story.

I-GO's not kidding when it say car sharing will save you big-time on annual auto costs. Seriously. Thousands of bucks!

3 New I-GO Car Locations

2009-03-18T14:37:00.003-05:00

We'll be kicking off April with 3 new I-GO car locations and, no, this is no April Fools! All 3 new I-GO locations are Chicago Park District spaces.

Independence Park (Irving Park & Pulaski)
Silver Honda Civic Hybrid

View Larger Map

Horner Park (2741 W Montrose Ave)
Silver Honda Fit

View Larger Map

Ridge Park (9625 S Longwood)
Blue Honda Civic

View Larger Map

Where else would you like to see new I-GO car locations? Let us know!

Emissions Accomplished?

2009-03-11T09:09:00.005-05:00

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is currently considering reversing a Bush administration decision which prevented California (along with 13 other states) from enacting stricter air-pollution standards for motor vehicles. This is great news, not only because of the positive environmental effects the stricter rules would bring about, but simply because it might actually happen!

California has been leading the fight to enact these stricter CO2 regulations for years now and has seen little help from the federal government. However, that was under the Bush administration. Things seem to be changing since Obama took office.

On January 21, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger sent a letter to President Obama requesting that he review the EPA's denial of California's waiver request, stating, "California and a growing number of farsighted states have sought to enforce a common-sense policy to reduce global-warming pollution from passenger vehicles, which are the source of 20 percent of our nation's greenhouse gas emissions. Regulation will not only reduce these emissions, but will also save drivers money and reduce our nation's dependence on foriegn oil... Your administration has a unique opportunity to both support the pioneering leadership of these states and move America toward global leadership on addressing climate change."

A mere five days after Governor Schwarzenegger sent this letter, President Obama directed federal regulators to review California's and 13 other states' request to set automobile emissions and fuel efficency standards. According to the Clean Air Act Section 209 - State Standards, the EPA must grant the waiver unless it finds that California:

-was arbitrary & capricious in its finding that its standards are, in the aggregate, at least as protective of public health and welfare as applicable federal standards;

-does not need such standards to meet compelling and extraordinary conditions; or

-has proposed standards not consistent with Section 202(a) of the Clean Air Act

The 13 other states joining California in this fight are: Arizona, Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington.

Help make this happen - sign the petition urging the EPA to grant the waiver!

I-GO gets some green ink

2009-03-10T12:09:00.002-05:00

I-GO recently received some sweet coverage in two green publications. The lead feature in Green Business Quarterly's spring issue profiles environmental initiatives at CTA and I-GO, including our new Chicago Card Plus/I-GO combo transit card. And the Illinois Environmental Council's 2009 Briefing Book includes an informative overview of sustainable transportation programs in the state, including I-GO.

Check 'em out and pass 'em around, folks!

The public likes public transportation!

2009-03-09T16:10:00.003-05:00

Americans took 10.7 billion trips on public transportation in 2008! This is a 4% increase over 2007 levels and also marks the highest level of ridership in 52 years, according to a report released by the American Public Transportation Association (APTA).

Ridership on all modes of public transportation increased in every quarter for the second year in a row. Light rail had the highest increase in annual ridership, growing by 8.3% in 2008, followed by commuter rail (4.7%), bus service (3.9%) and heavy rail (3.5%). Streetcars and trolleys are considered 'light rail', while subways are categorized as 'heavily rail'.

Not only are more people taking public transportation, they are also driving less: Total vehicle miles traveled in the U.S. declined by 3.6% from 2007 levels. According to the APTA report, "This ridership record continues a long-term trend of ridership growth. Public transportation use is up 38% since 1995, a figure that is almost triple the growth rate of the population". Not too shabby, huh?

Eco-friendly bamboo bikes

2009-03-08T14:49:00.003-05:00

As car sales continue to fall and gas prices remain above the $2/gallon mark, it seems like more and more people are taking up a common childhood activity - biking. Biking is a great way to get around the city- you don't have to deal with parking, gas, tickets, insurance, or traffic - AND you get some exercise along the way!

If you're thinking about buying a bike, check out the bamboo bikes from Calfee Design. Calfee Design claims that their bamboo bikes have the lowest carbon footprint of any bike on the market today. Moreover, Calfee Bamboo bikes have won awards for Best Road Bike, Best Off-Road Bike and Peoples' Choice Award at the American Handmade Bicycle Show.

Sun-Times compares I-GO & Zipcar

2009-03-02T11:22:00.007-06:00

Chicago Sun-Times reporter Mary Wisniewski driving an I-GO Prius. Photo from Chicago Sun-Times.

Great piece in the Chicago Sun-Times today about car sharing in Chicago. I think transportation reporter Mary Wisniewski does a nice job comparing the city's two main providers: I-GO Car Sharing and Zipcar. She doesn't take sides, instead inferring it's more of a lifestyle choice: Pay more for Zip, get more choices on types of cars (from green to glitzy); pay less for I-GO, get "less variety" (she cites I-GO's all-green fleet in the article), access in more neighborhoods, and a warm, toasty glow in your heart about contributing toward a non-profit.

Okay, she didn't really say warm, toasty thing.

And Wisniewski didn't give much play to another benefit offered by I-GO over Zip: The new Chicago Card Plus/I-GO Card we created with CTA this year that lets you ride CTA trains, buses, PACE buses and access I-GO cars. We're trying to link and expand public transit, make it more convenient to transfer from one mode to another, and reduce CO2 emissions by reducing car ownership and dependency.

That's also part of our joint mission with our parent org, the Center for Neighborhood Technology. And it's definitely something we offer that our competitor does not.

Although I'm not grinding any axes here. Obviously, I'd like to see I-GO succeed, but there is a huge amount of room in the Chicago market for car sharing providers to coexist peacefully. We're all still in the initial stage of just spreading the word about car sharing, and explaining to the curious what the hell it is. What it is, is a very good thing, indeed. But just like all the green initiatives getting a big push these days, it's going to take a major shift in the way we live and get around to truly effect a substantive change.

I-GO and I save!

2009-03-01T11:06:00.005-06:00

Ever wonder just how much you're saving by not owning a car? Check out the cost breakdown of one of our members' yearly driving expenses. Car sharing is about more than just "going green"—it can also save you some dough! And in today's economy, that's something we're all trying to do...

Show me the money, Jerry Maguire!

2009-02-27T11:34:00.006-06:00

The federal economic stimulus package is like a fat, bloody guy who tips over in his canoe in the Amazon: It's been swarmed over by every Tom, Dick & Harry org, biz, and state or local government with even the most remote justification for taking a nip out of the thrashing cash cow.

Thing is, of course, that creates a whole lotta bottlenecking, impatience and speculation about who'll get a piece of the pie.

The CTA's newest young-gun honcho and agency manager jack-of-all-trades, Richard Rodriguez—who's facing a daunting budget deficit and service-upgrade challenges even as his boss makes a mad dash for the 2016 Olympics—must be crossing his fingers so hard for a stimulus windfall that his knuckles are turning purple. He may get help from Springfield if the freebie rides for seniors that Gov. Nim-Rod proffered during his bread-and-circus reign get yanked.

Even the mayor of Obama's home town can't read the tea leaves. His wish list covers about as much ground as the President's in this video of a press conference recitation earlier this week that's posted on Mayor Daley's brand-new YouTube channel. (That's right: City Hall has finally taken a cue from the Obama internet-savvy playbook, minus slick web-design bells and whistles and an overarching effort to create government transparency.)

Give us this day our Daley bread.

We wish Rodriguez well. Seriously. We look forward to working with him and the CTA on promoting the new Chicago Card Plus/I-GO Card program. And we hope there's a piece of mutton left over from the stimulus gorging for our non-profit car-sharing agenda and the Center for Neighborhood Technology, I-GO's parent org. We're both part of a better green tomorrow that includes an expanded, synergistic public transportation system.

Because it's gonna take a whole lotta green to go green, folks. But it's the right thing to do.

Windy City, wind-powered cars?

2009-02-25T11:45:00.005-06:00

Listening last night to President Obama reiterate solar, wind, biofuel, etc., among the renewable energy sources he wants to see as cornerstones of a new green industrial complex in the U.S., one wonders how they'd be incorporated into a smart grid that benefits both consumers and business. The answers to that question are multitudinous and mind-blowing.

But here's one possible synergistic scenario I just read about on Green Tech: a smart-grid project on an island off the coast of Denmark—supported by both the Danish government and IBM—in which energy created by wind turbines is being used to generate electricity for plug-in electric hybrid cars.

It's not the technology R&D that's the hold-up, though. It's the usual red tape:

The article quotes Allan Schurr, the vice president of strategy and development at IBM's Global Energy and Utilities practice, who spells it out:

In an interview on Tuesday, Schurr said that he planned to tell members of Congress that smart-grid technologies are already available and can deliver substantial improvements in efficiency. What's holding back large-scale adoption isn't technology but regulations and "institutional inertia," according to the text of his testimony.

Gets pretty damn windy in Chicago, doesn't it? The most obvious place to create a wind-turbine corridor is through the Great Plains states, which skirt Illinois, but northern Illinois certainly packs enough wind power to feed off such a grid. ComEd and local engineering wunderkinds at some of our universities (I'm looking at you, IIT) have plug-in fever and are seriously interested in pursuing that future agenda.

Imagine wind turbines off-shore in Lake Michigan. Possible?

Maybe all we need to get a head start in this new game is a strong wind at our backs.

How economically stimulating: An I-GO Car Sharing discount

2009-02-24T11:20:00.004-06:00

I-GO is offering its own admittedly small-scale economic stimulus package this week: a sweet discount on membership sign-up.

We can't pay your mortgage or cut your taxes, but car sharing can help balance your budget by drastically reducing (in some cases, by thousands of dollars) the expenses that come with owning a car.

Approved applicants from Mon., Feb. 23, to Mon., March 2, can take advantage of the deal. Just use the promo code "IGOSTIMULUS" on the application form and we'll deduct $25 from the sign-up fee, PLUS toss in $25 in free driving credit. (Credits must be used by March 31.)

Ladies and gentlemen, start your budget-cutting engines.

Keepin' it rail in the Midwest

2009-02-23T11:02:00.003-06:00

Seems our previous blog post on high-speed rail's future prospects was a bit prescient. Check out this AP piece in the Chicago Tribune today on how Chicago, as a hub, stands to score more high-speed-rail funds thanks to early support from Obama and other Illinois pols in his cabinet (notably Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood).

Looks like Nevada and California—which want a high-speed line connecting Las Vegas and Anaheim—might be the caboose in this scenario.

Excerpted from the article:

Howard Learner, president of the Chicago-based Environmental Law and Policy Center, a group promoting a Midwest high-speed rail network, said his area is in excellent position to capture a good chunk of that money. The Federal Railroad Administration, he said, has recognized the Midwest initiative connecting Chicago and 11 metropolitan areas within 400 miles as the system most ready to go.

He and others brushed aside claims that the $8 billion was set aside for Reid's favorite. Obama, who expressed strong interest in high-speed rail investment during the campaign, and his chief of staff Rahm Emanuel, are both from Chicago. Obama's transportation secretary, Ray Lahood, also is from Illinois. So is the Senate's no. 2 Democrat, Richard Durbin.

A WPA-type high-speed-rail project in the Land of Lincoln, the original rail splitter? Somehow apropos, isn't it?

Then again, we're talking years and years of construction and development.

Meantime, why don't we all take a cue from the bike- and hike-friendly Rails to Trails Conservancy, and try to drive some funds their way as well? Those repurposed dilapidated tracks, like Chicago's imminent Bloomingdale Trail, could be fixed up a whole lot quicker.

(Above photo, of Obama-Biden whistle-stop tour during their election campaign, from Time Inc.)

Vehicle Relocations

2009-02-22T16:54:00.002-06:00

We are relocating 2 I-GO vehicles in the coming week. Don't worry- they aren't going far!

Car #4511: Blue Toyota Prius (currently at 2154 W Wabansia) will be moved just a few blocks on Monday, March 2nd to 2020 W Evergreen (see map below).

View Larger Map

Car #4546: Blue Toyota Matix (currently at 1355 N Dearborn) will be moved to 1360 N Sandburg Terrace this coming Friday (Feb 27th).

View Larger Map

High-speed trains: The cure for what rails us?

2009-02-19T10:33:00.008-06:00

The ginormous economic stimulus package signed, sealed and about to be delivered by President Obama and a grudgingly bipartisan congress dedicates serious greenbacks to science and technology. That includes, of course, alternative energy research and sustainable mass transit. Most of the talk is about cars, given that the Big Three are currently on a life-support system with a near-flatlining EKG.

Something that doesn't talked about much is high-speed rail. Lack of investment in rail, reports Jamble, an online magazine covering green travel, has left the U.S. decades behind Europe and Japan in modern rail infrastructure. Jamble wonders whether the funds going to improve our rail system will go to mod futuristic projects like the "Texas T-Bone" or a magnetic-levitation train from Las Vegas to Anaheim that claims potential speeds of 300mph (resulting in an 86-minute journey between the cities) or to, more realistically, improving Amtrak.

Americans like their cars, they like to fly, but not many of us bother with Amtrak, which isn't that much cheaper than flying, a sloth compared to high-speed rail, has a lousy track record in terms of accidents (like the train that recently plowed into a garbage truck outside St. Louis) caused by poor maintenance and human error, and doesn't boast an extensive enough network of lines and connections to make it a convenient option.

Otherwise known as the National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Amtrak is hardly a source of national pride. Which is a shame, really. It promises lower emissions, further independence from foreign oil, faster travel times than cars offer, business investment and tourism revenue, and a nostalgic way of reconnecting with the American landscape—something we've utterly lost in the evolution from horse-and-buggy to 727s and expressways. Toss in the modern equivalent of a Pullman car, the glamour of the old streamliners like the Super Chief, and we'll book a berth tomorrow.

Morgan Stanley leans on Chicago parking meters

2009-02-12T16:21:00.008-06:00

When few Chicago residents were paying attention, back on Dec. 4 City Council aldermen voted 40 to 5 in favor of a deal that gives Morgan Stanley a 75-year lease on Chicago parking meter revenue. Get ready for a shock: Rate hikes go into effect, appropriately enough, on Friday the 13th and will be phased in at more than 36,000 meters in the next few weeks.

Yes, that Morgan Stanley. The same Wall Street investment banking firm getting hauled in front of Rep. Barney Frank & Co. along with other Wall Street titans blamed for the subprime mortgage and credit clusterf*&k that led to the bank bailout that led to extra bonuses for Gotham's greediest.

The Trib reported the news in a straightforward way, but didn't cite Morgan Stanley by name, instead referring to our new Parking Czar as "a new private operator."

A blogger in the Huffington Post got it right.

The Loop gets hit first on Friday.

From the Trib piece:

The increases are part of a 75-year lease that city leaders recently approved with a new private operator. Under the agreement, the city receives an up-front payment of $1.15 billion from the company that will now collect payments from the meters.

The lease allows the private operator to raise rates in the coming years. The timetable for the initial increases:

*Loop: $3.50 an hour starting Friday.
*Near North, Near West and Near South: $2 an hour starting Saturday.
*Lincoln Park: $1 an hour Feb. 18-19.
*North Side: $1 an hour Feb. 20-28.
*West Side: $1 an hour March 1-2.
*South Side: $1 an hour March 5-9.

The $1-an-hour charges will mean a quadrupling of the cost to park at two-thirds of the meters in the city, where the current rate of 25 cents an hour has not changed in decades.

Although the meters have generated almost $20 million a year in net income for the city, Daley has hailed the privatization payout and similar leases of public assets as innovative thinking that will allow the city to continue to invest in vital public works projects today.

In the statement announcing the implementation of the rate hikes, Daley chief of staff Paul Volpe said the lease “is another part of the mayor’s ongoing commitment to protect taxpayers from a tax increase.”

Someone ID'd as "Chicago Bred" responded with this comment on the Trib website:

Now is the time to utilize and expand carsharing-IGO comes to mind. It's scary to think about 75 years of more money to a private company for an upfront payout which is probably already spent.

And the comments get a lot more incendiary than that:

How obscene is it that Morgan Stanley now rakes in our inflated meter rates? This is one of the banks that gouged and took advantage of homebuyers that led to the financial crisis and then received big bucks from the bailout. How did this agreement ever come together in the first place? I haven't seen much scrutiny of the details of this. And now while we're digging deep into our pockets just to pick up some milk at the corner store, it's those small struggling business people (who will never receive a govt. bailout) who will suffer from the loss of business. Patrick Fitzgerald, are looking at this one?

Sold the streets/parking meters to a private company with less three days notice to the alderman to review it for 1.1 billion. I'm not a math wiz but amortization should bring that to well over 6 billion dollars for the new owners.

What's interesting is that I went to city hall the day that Daley was announcing his proposal for budget cuts and he said that one way to save money was to stop going through contractors and private companies for certain city services, like security. It doesn't make sense to lease something for 75 years to someone else when the city can pocket the money. Who knows with inflation if the deal will even be worth it in 75 years?

As a resident of the loop, these meter hikes affect me directly. Up until now, the meters around my building did not need to be fed on evenings, Sundays, and holidays. Friends and family loved to visit me because they could find parking on these off-hours. This, of course, is no longer the case. Time for me to move to a different neighborhood.

Why Chicago needed to sell the streets (75 year lease to me spells "sold") to get extra money is beyond me. Seems like they should have been able to find a way to increase the rates themselves. What drove Chicago to SELLING and handing over control and how did the council win the vote on this?!?!?

Are we seriously supposed to scrounge around for change to feed the meter on Christmas Day and Thanksgiving??? Have they no decency?

Guys, the best way to describe the privatization is that we're taking a mortgage on our parking meters. Daily knows he can make more money for the city in the long run by raising rates and keeping the control in the city's hands. But he also knows that he has a huge ($20million) budget shortfall this year and he can't keep the machine running without taking out a loan! He's brining the extra money forward with the privatization.

Wow.

First the ubiquitous cameras recording our license plates, now this. Who do our streets belong to anyway? Apparently, not the citizens of Chicago.

Car sharing can be part of the solution. But while I-GO does maintain reserved parking spaces that its members don't pay for, we (and Zipcar, for that matter, too) can't do anything about our hijacked and pawned-off parking meters.

Better start stocking up on those quarters. Although I'm feeling more drawn and quartered right now.

Shredded Tweet, Good to Eat?

2009-02-12T11:52:00.005-06:00

Just created a Twitter profile for I-GO recently: Check it out at http://twitter.com/igocarsharing if you're so inclined. Wondering if it's worth our while, though... I mean, does anyone really care what's going through my head every five minutes? And is it possible to convey all the facets of sustainable, alternative transportation in fragmentary bursts of electronic text? Me thinks 'tis folly, but I have been able to respond to a few folks interested in I-GO, both from a business and customer POV.

Trick or Tweet? I dunno. You tell me. But feel free to chirp away at us on our Twitter feed: igocarsharing.

Above image from Twitter.com

CTA & I-GO make good train-ing partners

2009-02-09T12:41:00.005-06:00

Anyone else notice this graphic lately? It's featured prominently in a ton of print ads that have been on CTA trains and buses since early January. The tagline that accompanies it: "One card, three ways to go." And here's the copy: "A seamless way to travel through the city using just one card. Bus, train, and now 200 I-GO cars."

I've been on the lookout for the ads, and I-GO also has its own smaller ad on the CTA. Judging from our web traffic stats, looks like folks are seeing the ads and checking us out.

So what is it exactly? It's the brand-new Chicago Card Plus/I-GO joint smart card. A card with two micro chips that gives you access to all CTA trains and buses, Pace buses, and I-GO's citywide fleet of car-sharing vehicles. The idea: to promote a more unified, expansive and sustainable public transportation network.

Throw your bike into the equation (many of I-GO's cars have racks or are parked near racks, and we'd like to make that more pervasive - check out our Cars & Locations page), and, hell, you may never need to own a car. Now if we could just continue this current warming trend...

Ideal Bite locks lips with I-GO

2009-02-06T12:51:00.004-06:00

Today's Ideal Bite—a great site that cuts the mystique out of environmental buzz words and advises consumers on practical, affordable ways to live green—gives a shout-out to I-GO and car sharing for its Chicago "Bite" tip. Thanks, Ideal Bite!

BTW, that's our own Lauren Hugel in that Toyota Prius in the photo they posted—although you can just barely get a glimpse of Lauren, who works in I-GO's fleet management department.

Also, BTW, did you know that about half our fleet is made up of low-emission vehicles? I-GO's got Priuses out the wazoo (whatever a "wazoo" is—I've never understood the term...paging William Safire...).

Green jobs and cars offer hope for U.S. economy

2009-02-06T09:35:00.014-06:00

EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson (above, far right) at the 2009 Washington Auto Show

The latest Labor Department buzz-kill report that Uncle Sam shed almost 600,000 jobs in January is beyond depressing. Could there possibly be a silver lining to this relentless economic attrition?

The people who work at I-GO, for our parent company the Center for Neighborhood Technology, and at other green-industry orgs and businesses across the nation think so.

Consider this: Even as the U.S. Senate drags its Bruno Magli heels implementing President Obama's economic stimulus shot-in-the-arm (an arm—if we're to torture this metaphor further—that's showing some serious junky track marks lately), there are two fascinating trade shows taking place in D.C. that are giving off faint whiffs of optimism and future progress: the Good Jobs Green Jobs National Conference and the Washington Auto Show.

Check out the list of keynote speakers at the former, where more than 2,000 labor, environmental and business advocates are schmoozing to shape the national debate about investment in clean energy and green technologies.

When was the last time anyone saw the CEOs of the American Wind Power Association and the Alliance for Climate Protection mingling with the Teamsters and United Steelworkers unions? Strange bedfellows? Not in these radically changing times, folks. I prefer to see it as a hugely promising sign of collaboration between traditional industry and the emerging green vanguard.

Meanwhile, down the block, at the Auto Show, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood (a questionable Obama-cabinet Illinois pol who probably isn't going to wash that bad Blagojevich taste from our mouths any time soon) and EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson (who may prove just as toxic) are virtually red-carpet celebrities. The Big Three is kissing up to D.C. and giving the emissions-control folks all the green they want—as in green cars, not cash.

A US News & World Report article on the Auto Show's website and another by Washington Post auto industry reporter Warren Brown make it clear that the balance of power and clout have left Detroit and entered the Beltway, presumably for the long haul.

Green cars are all the rage at the show, which prominently featured a Green Car Summit panel discussion and plenty of grinning greenhorns. Automakers and their lobbyists are working the levers to convince policymakers that Detroit is finally heeding the call to build more fuel-efficient cars:

It's a radical change for an industry that once used its clout to prevent fuel-efficiency laws from passing. "Has the industry lost its power to say no?" Dave McCurdy, president of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, asked the Post. "The industry is saying, 'Yes, however. . . . Yes, let's work it out.' It's a different starting point in the discussion. The nature of the industry has changed."

Biggest sign of the times at the show: The Chevrolet Volt won the 2009 Green Car Vision Award given by auto enthusiast magazine Green Car Journal. The contestants it beat out included an electric version of the MINI Cooper (OMG, how cute would that be?) and Honda's FCX Clarity, an all-hydrogen fuel cell sedan (Honda and Toyota—what can you say? ahead of the curve again).

The Volt sounds pretty awesome, though. From the Auto Show's site:

“The Chevy Volt offers a bold and far-reaching approach that will bring an exceptionally fuel efficient model to consumers at reasonable cost,” says Ron Cogan, editor and publisher of the Green Car Journal and editor of GreenCar.com. “Besides being a great design, the Volt promises exactly what many consumers are asking for – a car capable of driving on zero emission battery power most of the time at pennies per mile, with over 100 mpg possible on longer journeys when electric power from its range extender engine-generator is needed.”

Here's a slogan I'll give Chevy for free: "Rock the Volt"

Eh? Pretty good, right?

Tracking the CTA

2009-02-04T10:21:00.011-06:00

The sweeping changes underway at the CTA are fueling water-cooler conversation for working stiffs and sustainable-transportation experts alike.

The latter category includes Maria Choca Urban, one of our colleagues at the Center for Neighborhood Technology (I-GO's parent org, an urban-sustainability-focused "think and do tank"), who, on Monday's Eight Forty-Eight program on Chicago Public Radio (WBEZ), gave an insightful assessment of the CTA that comes from firsthand experience. Maria was formerly General Manager for Policy and Strategic Solutions at CTA, and now serves as Program Manager for Transportation and Community Development at CNT.

Listen to the streaming audio file here.

RedEye's "Going Public" columnist Kyra Kyles was the other guest commentator on the show, and both women offered a balanced, informed POV on the the agency many Chicagoans have had a love-hate relationship with for decades.

Of course, Daley's favorite young-gun troubleshooter—ascendent, studly Everyman Ron Huberman, who's apparently on track to head every major city agency before declaring himself a senatorial or gubernatorial candidate (not too far-fetched, right?)—was the main topic. Maria offered praise for Huberman's efforts in his too-brief stint at CTA, including better accountability standards in the massive bureaucracy (did you know CTA has 11,000 employees?! and that's after a recent layoff), making better use of collected data, and the CTA's oft-beleaguered customer relations.

But she and Kyles both agreed that the new Chicago Public Schools chief (hey, he's an ex-cop and transit guy—maybe he can get the kids to class on time and bust more troublemakers) wasn't in charge long enough to see his initiatives truly evolve and pay off.

When a listener called in to ask why Chicago can't have city agency bosses with experience specific to the orgs they head, Maria said that she and her fellow transit-minded think-tankers at CNT would definitely like to see a experienced transportation professional take the reins at CTA.

Is Dorval Carter, the interim prez, the right dude for the gig?

Carter's a lawyer who moved up from Executive Vice President for Operations Support, and he's been responsible for directing the planning and operations functions for multiple departments including Human Resources, Purchasing, Public Affairs, Government and Community Relations and Finance. Prior to joining the CTA in 2000, Carter spent 10 years at the Federal Transit Administration where he was Assistant Chief Counsel for Legislation and Regulation and managed the office responsible for preparing and directing the federal legislative and regulatory agenda for the FTA.

I just ripped that info straight from the CTA press release.

Trying to remain objective here. Because we here at I-GO have high hopes for the CTA's ongoing transformation. We just partnered with CTA to create a brand-new joint smart card—the Chicago Card Plus/I-GO Card—that gives you access to trains, buses and I-GO's citywide fleet of car-sharing vehicles. The idea is to make public transit more expansive and green. We're fans of any form of sustainable transit that decreases congestion on the roads and CO2 in our skies.

Any opinions out there on how the CTA and I-GO might further perpetuate this agenda? We'd love to hear from you. Just click on the Comments link below and give us your two cents.

iTunes and I-GO

2009-02-02T11:32:00.005-06:00

I-GO may not have electric plug-in cars - yet - but there's another way you can plug in during your next I-GO trip: with an iPod.

I live in Uptown, and the two I-GO cars I use the most are parked in the Bridgeview Bank lot at Broadway and Lawrence. One's a Toyota Prius, the other's a Honda Civic (also a hybrid). As an avid music fan (and critic - I'm a regular contributor to Time Out Chicago), I typically spend a few minutes surveying my music collection to select just the right CD for my next I-GO jaunt.

Until it dawned on me, belatedly, that my trusty #4436 (dedicated I-GOers know their favorites cars' IDs by heart) comes equipped with an auxiliary input for my iPod. Duh. 3,458 songs versus a 12-track CD? Hmmm.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, as an I-GO staffer I should've known this. But, like many members, I'm often making my reservations in a hurry and just clicking through quickly to the car I want and the specified time, so that nobody else can grab it when I need it. I don't always look at the various search amenities on the online reservation site.

One of those amenities (in the "Find a Car" form) lets you choose a car equipped with an auxiliary mini-jack input (via the headphone port) for a portable digital audio player (or smart phone). Just check "AUX Input" and hit the search button. Lots of I-GO cars have the hookup: mainly new model year vehicles from '06 to '09, and lots of the Hondas (Civics, Fits) have them, although many of the Priuses and Scions are starting to get them, too. It's often located on the dash console, but sometimes it's part of the storage compartment between the front seats.

So stop by an electronics dealer and drop a few bucks on a mini-to-mini auxiliary cable cord (with two male ends) for your MP3 player. (The Apple version is pretty cool.)

Just keep your hands on the click wheel and your eyes on the road.

3 New I-GO Car Locations

2009-01-30T13:01:00.003-06:00

I'm happy to announce that we're adding 3 new I-GO locations early next week!

411 E. Ontario (Blue Honda Civic)

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300 N Canal (Gray Toyota Matrix)

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3941 N Ashland (Blue Honda Element)

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Pat Quinn supports I-GO Car Sharing

2009-01-29T16:39:00.013-06:00

Above: Quinn, second from right, with I-GO CEO Sharon Feigon (far left) and DePaul University representatives during an I-GO/DePaul partnership ceremony in spring 2008.

As Rod Blagojevich's governorship implodes, and Illinois Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn prepares to take the reins of the unwieldy contraption known as the State of Illinois government, we at I-GO Car Sharing would like to acknowledge that Pat's an old supporter of our organization and an avid supporter of car sharing and green, sustainable public transit.

Chicagoist just reposted an archived interview they conducted with Quinn in April 2007. When asked for his opinion on transit, Quinn gives I-GO a huge plug as part of the solution for a more efficient public transit system. He's quite the fortune teller: Just a few weeks ago, the CTA and I-GO joined forces to create a new Chicago Card Plus/I-GO smart card that can be used to ride CTA trains and buses and also access I-GO's fleet of cars across Chicago, Evanston and Oak Park.

Here's that part of the interview:

Chicagoist: When you talk about tax relief and budgets in the State of Illinois, those three things - education, health care and tax relief always seem to come up. On a more local level, what would you propose to solve the transit crisis in the region?

Pat Quinn: Well, I take the CTA, and have all my adult life. And I think it really is a crisis. I think the poor service, the trains not always clean as they should be, management leaving a lot to be desired, this should really be addressed. We need the so-called [Regional Transit Authority] to really truly be regional. Too many turf wars between Pace, Metra, CTA, RTA. Given the crisis we have, and the sustainability challenge we have, to have a green way of thinking, where you need to have an excellent public transit system, I think you just can’t hand out money in Springfield to agencies that have been acting in a dysfunctional manner. So I think you have to put some strings on that to get better performance. An example would be a universal pass, which you could use for all transit services, including there’s something we know about called I-GO, which is car-sharing. So you have your transit pass, if you wanted to use a car, and use it for an hour, you know you have this not-for-profit entity, and you can get an I-GO car, and use your pass to drive for an hour to shop, and then bring it back to where the space is. To me those are the creative solutions we need to have right now.