Hot Wheels 2 Lane V Drop Track Set
FLL Transportation Research in the Capital District, NY
Problems and Potential Solutions for the 2009 First Lego League challengeImprovements in transportation have a significant impact on a large number of people. Innovations in transportation include hybrid cars, Segway, bike paths, underground walkways, extensive bus systems, light rail, ... THIS DRAFT DOCUMENT IS IN PROGRESS. Weekly Entries Oct. 9
2009 First Lego League Project Topic - Transportation
Two first lego league teams are working on projects to identify problems and potential solutions to some of the transportation problems in the capital district. The topic of the 2009 First Lego League challenge is Smart Moves and involves transportation. Each team has to:First Lego League
1. identify a transportation problem in their local area 2. research solutions to these problems 3. propose a solution to their local problem 4. Present these findings to people in their local community 5. Present these findings at a FLL competition
THE BIG PROBLEM
Albany is unfriendly to any form of transportation except automobiles. There is little incentive for residents and commuters to consider and use alternative forms of transportation. Two issues seem to influencing the lack of incentive: 1) A car-centric conception of transportation. And 2), a lack of infrastructure (e.g. bike paths, safe walking routes, availability to alternative modes of transportation, poor urban planning, etc.). AGABoys' Problem - Improved Infrastructure to Make Albany a Bike-Friendly City
Increasing the use of bike paths in Albany will reduce the use of fossil fuels, reduce the use of roads, reduce the use of cars, reduce the cost of transportation, increase physical exercise, and reduce stress. Biking is unsafe in Albany because there is very limited acess to bike routes for commuters and recreational bikers. Drivers in Albany are typically unfriendly to bikers due to many reasons.Solutions
Retooling existing roads 1. add bike lanes 2. slow traffic - lower speed limits, speed bumps, restricted times 3. widen roads to allow for more bike lanesMore bike paths 1. add more bike paths 2. further develop bike paths that currently exist 3. add underpasses/overpasses to avoid traffic and improve safety 4. widen bike paths to allow for more bike traffic - more people would use them
Raising Awareness - why should we bike?
1. Increase Bike Use 3. Exercise 4. Change perception about bike use 5. Cultivate future generations of bike users 6. Reduce fossil fuelsPublic Access to Bikes
1. Programs to provide free, publicly available bikes - example - carts in airportsBoys Task 1
For each task, find examples. Write at least a paragraph that describes the example, identifies key components, describe whether it is working or not working in that setting. Would that model apply to us or would any parts of the model apply to increasing/improving biking in Albany.1. More bike paths - widen roads for bike lanes, more bike paths, etc. - Ben, Caleb
Davis, CA platinum bike city movie
London's master bike plan for infrastructure new bicycle parking terminal in Washington, DC
movie about separated bike lanes in NYC bike lanes in NYC
separated bike lanes in europe
2. examples of bike overpasses/underpasses - William, Andrew
John's Canal Loop Bike Path, Arizona, Phoenix -- Will Lookit the over/underpasses!
We could use more of these.--Andrew http://daviswiki.org/Bike_Overpasses LOOK AT THIS. It's very cool.--Andrew http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=851319&category=LIFE 3. example of a bike to school program -Sam http://www.parade.com/news/2009/09/27-a-free-wheeling-city.html - Sam http://www.walktoschool-usa.org/ (Sam) http://dot.ci.tucson.az.us/bicycle/ (Sam) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4uWst7VjjrA (Sam) Boulder, CO bike to school programs from Ben4. Bike Loaner Programs - Luke
Bike loan systems recycle bikes. The get bikes that people are throwing away and fix them up. People that don't have any bikes can ride the bikes that they fix and I think that is good. They think it is good to have bikes back on the road. You can donate a bike right hear in Troy.
university of idaho bike loaner progam
regional bike programs
Troy NY bike rescue
I sent an email to the Troy Bike Rescue:
Hi my name is Luke. I want to know who gets the bikes? I want to know
because I am doing research for a Lego competition and I found your website
I wanted to check it out.
And they replied!
Bikes in our shop are up for adoption. Anyone can get one. We have a small selection ready to go bikes up for instant adoption for a suggested donation, and larger selection of project bikes that need some TLC from prospective adopters.
if you want to check out TBR you can find our hours on the site.
hope that helps.
thanks for your interest!
andrew
Create a commuter program in Portland, OR from Ben
Boy's Research Summaries for Oct 8, 2009
FLL Bike-to-School Programs (Sam)
There are many examples of Bike to School programs. I checked three programs. One program was in Boulder, CO. I also checked two videos on YouTube about how cities made bike-friendly changes. I also looked at a website about walking and biking in the U.S.
People are trying to make unfriendly bike places friendly. The program that worked best had three basic elements: 1) There needs to be money from the government like grants. 2) You need to make sure the infrastructure supports the program with wider sidewalks, bike lanes, and safer crossings. And 3), the policies need to allow kids to walk and bike to school.
In Davis, CA, most kids do not use school buses. Many children ride their bikes to school, or they walk. They save fossil fuel. They get some exercise outdoors. And families get to bike together. But it took them almost 30 years to make Davis a bike friendly city.
A Bike-to-School program will work in Albany if the road workers change the roads to allow for bikers and walkers. They should make median islands or barriers so bikes are not part of the car traffic. The program won't work if the workers don't change the roads.
John's Canal Loop Bike Path (Will!)
This Bike path has many over/underpasses, bridges, restaurants/shops just off route, restrooms, is 25 miles long and would take the average biker about 2 - 2.5 hours. It is in Arizona, near Phoenix. Above, under the video, is a link to an online map of it!
All in all, it is a great idea!
THIS JUST IN:
These would be SUPERDUPER GREAT 4 BIKES! (AND a hard budget!) If they stopped hands-down ALL traffic... [perfecto for central/colvin intersection!] BUT THIS:
So-called "Bike Lane": [falls into canal] TOTALLY BLASPHEMOUS! (tschackzong) (Will!)FLL Bike Infrastructure (Ben) There are many types of bike lanes. They include bike paths, bike lanes on the road, and physically separated bike lanes. I am interested in physically separated bike lines because they are safer, more people ride on them, parents would let their children ride on them, and they're like a sidewalk to bikes. I watched a video about bike lanes in NYC. Their bike lanes aren't physically separated from the cars. The video shows that it's dangerous to use those bike lanes. The dangers include:
- getting "doored", meaning that someone opens the door without looking as you go by on your bike.
- cars, trucks, and delivery vehicles park in the bike lane and force bikers into traffic
- vehicles do right hand turns from the bike lane, which is dangerous for bikers.
- Parents would never let their kids ride their bikes there. One man in the video said that the bike lanes were a "war zone".
Davis, CA is rated a platinum bike city. Most people ride their bikes often. Davis committed to making themselves a biking city. This means that they support infrastructure to allow people to get all around the city on bikes. This means they have traffic slowing near crossings for bikes, over and under passes to get around and through major roadways and intersections, and include bike lanes in their transportation planning. They have the first ever biker crossing light that can be activated with a button or a ground sensor. Adding more bike lanes in Albany needs a combined approach. Adding bike lanes to major roads where adults may ride would allow more people to bike to work. Separated bike lanes or bike paths would encourage more kids to ride their bikes. Parents would allow their kids to ride on these safer bike options.
Examples of bike overpasses/underpasses (Andrew)
I think bike overpasses in Albany would be a great idea. Although they are pretty darn expensive, ( I saw one that cost over nine hundred THOUSAND dollars [That is a LOT of lego sets, Luke!] !!!) they would encourage a lot of people to ride their bikes. I was going through some blogs from people who had bike overpasses built in their city or town, and the most common statement was, " Beats going through six lanes of heavy traffic!" Most people enjoyed riding over them, but suggested watching out for trolls. As for underpasses, I don't know if they would catch on as well. They are even more expensive to build than overpasses, and they might not be as family-safe at night. (two words: crazy teenagers) You also have to pay for lighting. http://daviswiki.org/Bike_BridgesBoys Task 2: Proposal Ideas: Solutions and Justification (Due Oct. 15, 2009)
The next step for the boys FLL project is to settle on a cluster of Albany-specific solutions to clarify the next round of research. Generate at least one paragraph to address the following question: What set of solutions would you propose to make Albany a bike friendly city? Proposals should include the following elements:- Identify three high-leverage infrastructure-oriented solutions for making Albany a bike friendly city.
- Describe where specifically in Albany you would implement these solutions.
- Give at least 2 reasons why your solutions and prospective locations will make sense when applied in Albany. Make connections to what you've learned about other programs and other cities to justify your proposals.
Please post your proposals to the knol by Thursday. We'll use the FLL time Friday to settle on a working list of short and long term solutions the group can research further with specific doable tasks. (e.g., cost considerations, challenges to implementing proposal ideas, consideration of Albany-specific design features, long term improvements and plans, and the like).
Task 2 (Will!)My "3 high-leverage infrastructure-oriented solutions":
"Green light request" buttons; Separated bike lanes, with lighted ballards and/or a padding in case of crashes/falls; and enclosed overpasses (underpasses too expensive/too much work to build/dangerous at night; gangs).
Where I would put these: on busy streets; such as washington, central, lark, and the central/colvin intersection.
and finally, WHY they would make SENSE: "Green light request" buttons would only take minor rewiring of traffic lights, and would be very inexpensive, just like those walkin'-guy buttons. very unlike overpasses (andrew: 'I saw one that cost over nine hundred THOUSAND dollars!!!');
And... bike paths w/ lighted ballards (or just curbs) would make it extra safe; Overpasses... ummm, maybe just a couple. might be a little expensive.
(tschackzong)
(Will!) Task 2 (Andrew)
1# A couple of years ago, my dad took me to get a bigger bike, since I had outgrown my current one. We cruised around downtown Albany for an hour, just trying to find a bike place that wasn't too expensive or too cheap. Unfortunately, all of the bike shops fell under these two categories.
As we drove home after a very disappointing search, my dad spotted a small bike shop sign on a church window, and we decided to check it out. Inside, we found a small operation going on in the basement of this church, which sponsored the operation. If there was a name for it, I'm sorry to say that I can't remember it, but this was how it worked:
Because of the impeding energy crisis, and a deep recession, a lot of teens and adults are on the streets and in gangs because they can't hold up a job, due to poor transportation (if none at all). This program hires kids, adults, or volunteering college students in need of work to skirt around the city, pick up broken bikes and bike parts that are commonly found on the streets, and then bring them back to the bike shop to be reused to build (mostly) new bikes, which will be sold extremely cheap or for free. Why it's helplful:
1. It gives kids something to do other than hang out in gangs, since most kids enjoy tinkering with bike parts.
2. It puts a little earned money in their pockets (they get paid).
3. While these kids are off the streets and building bikes, others are receiving free bikes that can get them to their jobs and other places quickly.
4. When I visited this place, it was filled to the ceiling with bike parts and working teens, and that shop only covers a small area of downtown Albany for loose bike parts. If we can get the city to sponsor this program, there could be free bike shops popping up all over the city.
5. It will clean up the city, piece by piece, and make Albany a safer place.
6. More bikes in more people's hands means less cars---and more biking!
For numbers 2# and 3#, first look at this----
2# I think a good way to improve Albany would be to position a bike path along Madison and Washington avenue. With Madison, not only would it be a great bike path, it would solve a lot of problems along the way. Like at Saint Rose, Where a lot of college students could get to school from the Housing district quickly and safely.As for Washington Ave., it would be a great biking route (it goes all the way from Schenectady to Albany) and would connect the Housing district to the state building, the soccer field(I've noticed that a lot of older kids bike to the soccer field), and Washington park.
3# Two great places for an overpass would be where Western Ave. branches off to make Madison Ave., and where south mall arterial and Washington come together at the state capitol building.At the Western/Madison intersection, an overpass would be a great way to connect south Allen st. to north Allen st. safely over Madison and Western, which are both very busy streets. This would also connect the south portion of the Housing district to the north without having to cross Western.
At the point where south mall arterial and Washington combine, there is a TON of traffic, which usually gives the bikers around there a hard time. Not only would an overpass help the bikers, it would ease the traffic congestion, since cars often have to stop for bikers and people walking by.By the way.....
LOOK AT THIS. It's awesome!--Andrew
http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=851319&category=LIFE Task 2 (Ben) Andrew's research inspired me to go on a field trip today. We went to the Downtube to find out about Albany's biking system. We learned that Albany has a bicycling master plan. You can read about the public presentation of the master plan here. Albany has a map showing existing conditions and current bike paths. Here is a destination and barriers map.The City of Albany's Bicycle Master Plan, funded through the Linkage Program, is underway. The first public meeting was help on February 25th at the Albany Public Library main branch. The second meeting was in June 2009. See this site for a summary of the first public meeting here. Information about why people ride their bikes and where they would like to see bike routes is given.
At the second meeting (click here for details), they outlined major bike routes on this map
And major bike routes with neighborhood routes added on this map.
There's a number to call and I think we should call and make an appointment and get bigger pictures of these maps! The Times Union wrote an article about a plan to add a bike route to Madison Ave from North Allen St. down to Lark St. Here is the article. Before we pick a route, I think we should learn more about the results of the public meeting and we should learn more about the Madison bike route plan. Eric at the Downtube also told me about the Albany and Troy Bike Rescue programs. The Albany Bike Rescue program located at Trinity Church. Here's the site. You earn bikes (not money) if you work at the shop. They are open on Wednesday nights. We should go and check it out. Boston just implemented a bike sharing program from ibix. You pay to rent a bike and then return the bike to one of the racks around the city when you're done. This is the same system that's used in London.
Luke
1. Add bike lanes with physical barriers on Western Ave.
2. Build over and underpasses on busy intersections like on 85 with roundabouts
3. Stop lights with bikes in mind on Russell Road where Lili and I ride to Stewarts.
4. Albany should have a bike loaner program like Troy. Around Washington Park would be good because a lot of people ride bikes around there from what I've seen.
These would make Albany bike friendly and safe. It might get more people on their bikes because they would think it was safe. The bike loaner program would reuse bikes. Task 2 (Sam) Great ideas guys! Wow! Here are my thoughts on the problem: I like the following ideas for Albany. 1) I think it makes sense to consider changing the main roads in Albany with barriered two-way bike lanes. 2) I also think having the sensors in the road at busy intersections would be good. Maybe we could link the sensors with Will ideas for a bike crossing light of some kind. And 3), I'd like to think more about having a rent-a-bike or public bike sharing program too. I'd focus on adding the bike lanes to the main roads in Albany first, since they have the most traffic, and they run from one end of Albany to the other, almost. Central, Washington, and Western Avenue would be my picks. We could have bike share and public rental shops at each end of the main roads so people could grab a bike, ride it, and also drop it off at more than one location. The main reason to focus on changing the roads, is that without that, none of the other programs would seem have that much impact on making Albany a safer and better place to ride or walk. We all have bikes already and nowhere to ride them. Changing the roads would also connect many of the neighborhoods in the city, so we could bike to a friend's house in another neighborhood easily.
Boy's Task 3: Research Summaries for Oct 23, 2009
Regenerative Bicycle brake Ben came across this link while doing his research. His idea is to create a bike sharing program in Albany where the bikes are free to use and the company makes money by selling the energy stored in the bike to the local utility. Your assignment for this week is to learn more about regenerative brakes by clicking on Ben's link and doing your own research about regenerative brakes. Post your links here.Write at least one paragraph on what you've learned and include any links you think are relevant for our project.
Think about how you could demonstrate this solution at the competition. How could you represent your idea using legos and the NXT? What do you think of this idea for your project?
LINKS ON REGENERATIVE BRAKES Panasonic Bike uses regenerative braking (Will!) http://www.greencarcongress.com/2008/03/sanyo-introduci.html - Andrew
New idea for regenerative brake system
I'm still hazy on how the regenerative brakes store the energy. From what I read, the difference between regenerative brakes and normal brakes are that normal brakes cause friction on the road, but regenerative brakes make the electric motor run backwards and make it slow down. I haven't found any site that I understand how they explain how the regenerative brake system gets the energy back. The regenerative brakes: are bulky and they use all there energy to push the bike forward instead of saving their energy for when you need it. ---Luke
Write at least one paragraph on what you've learned and include any links you think are relevant for our project.
Think about how you could demonstrate this solution at the competition. How could you represent your idea using legos and the NXT? What do you think of this idea for your project?
Task 3 (Andrew)
I chose to research more in the area of production/efficiency for regenerative bikes. There was a campaign to get them to catch on in Japan, which I guess went pretty well, ending up selling over 280, 000 bikes in a year. Regenerative bikes also boost the efficiency of the bikes up to 25%, if the harnessed energy is used on a motor for the bike. When you pedal forward, the energy is transferred to a battery. When the energy runs out, the bike slows down and you have to pedal again.(a bit of a safety hazard if you're in a busy bike lane) Here's a few videos I found. YouTube VideoThis one mostly explains the components of a regenerative bike.
Google Videoand now it's time for....
Task 3: Will!
"A regenerative brake is a mechanism that reduces vehicle speed by converting some of its kinetic activity into another form of energy." -- CNET Crave
Panasonic's Lithium Vivi RX-10S allows the cyclist to generate maximum power by applying both brakes or half the max power by applying only one.
The Vivi RX-10S' regenerative brakes throw the energy into a 2nd 2.5 kilogram Li-ion battery, which can extend the assisted range from 90 to approx. 125 km.
It has an Auto mode that uses a built-in torque sensor that switches between 4 levels of assistance (increases when going uphill, deactivates when coasting downhill).
It costs 150, 000 yen (US $1, 395)!
SANYO is also believed to have used similar tech in it's "Enacle" series.
Rescources: CNET Crave
(tschackzong) (Will!)
BEN
the new tech system for bikes is called regenerative biking brakes. when you brake The energy is given to the battery and also to the power store compartment. The energy stored in the battery could be used to provide power when going uphill. If the cyclist chooses to power their bike with pedal power they could store the energy in the battery. At a later date the cyclist could bring the bike to a plug in at a charging station to get money from the machine. The regenerative bike brake system, a hybrid, has a new model called the hybrid2. Task 3 -- SamI learned that regenerative braking systems (RBS) have been around a while, since 1967. The technical term is a Kinetic Energy Recovery System. Regenerative braking systems are used commonly in race cars. Cool! I also learned that there are some limitations to RBSs. The bike components are bulky and make the bike big and heavy. The RBS bikes I read about were very expensive, over $1000! Another limitation is that you get very little energy saved if you are going slowly on the RBS bike. So a concern for our project is to think about whether it is worthwhile to save the little bits of lost energy. The science works. But is it worth the trouble? Also, I wonder whether it's possible to make an RBS bike that children can ride. So far, the RBS bikes are big and are probably only for adults. I would like to think more about how to make an RBS bike work for children and not be so expensive.
Boy's Task 4: Research Summaries for Oct 30, 2009
Research the following three questions: 1. What is a generator? How does it work?Check out these links Link 1 - http://geektechnique.org/projectlab/511 Link 2 - http://www.creative-science.org.uk/gen1.html Link 3 - http://www.freelights.co.uk/howmake.html
Do a google search for "dynamo bike hubs"
2. Our idea is to expand upon or broaden the project described here Regenerative Bicycle brake How do we want to do this in Albany?
Do we want a bike sharing program that collects the energy from the bikes?
Do we want bikes to become standard with dynamo hubs and create stations where you can "upload" your energy and get credit on your bike energy credit card?
3. When you watch the wheel stop for the regenerative bike brake, how does the wheel actually stop? What force is acting on the wheel? Remember that it can't be friction or the energy wouldn't be stored for future use.
Write at least one paragraph on what you've learned and include any links you think are relevant for our project.
Luke:
ipod bike charger: I don't get most of how he made the charger for the ipod onto his bike, but I got that he needed to charge his ipod using a cable connected to the white thing he held. He didn't want more than a certain amount or it could hurt the ipod. It's neat how he can charge his ipod while biking.
Basic generator: A coil of wire wrapped around a nail with a magnet facing it, the magnet or wire has to be moving in a circular motion and that generates electricity.
Dynamo: You have a coil of wire a magnet inside and a diode connected to the wire, when another magnet passes by the magnet inside the wire it spins and that generates electricity.
Bike rentals in Albany: We read comments on the web page about regenerative bike breaks that would give you a bus pass. Some people thought it was a ridiculous because they did calculations on a bike powering a bus that it would take quite a lot of bikers just to power one hour for a bus. They also thought it would be a good idea to regenerative bike breaks because it would be "green" and help the environment because there are no fumes while riding a bike. They also mentioned that people might steal the bikes, or take the energy stored in them. But I think that would certainly be nice. bike rentals with a Dynamo on them would be great because it would provide energy for whatever you want. It would help the environment, and it may not be able to power vehicles, but it would encourage people to ride bikes instead of cars. The stealing thing, I don't think that it's good, but if the people who make the brakes to put trackers inside them, they would always know where the bikes were.
How the regenerative bike stops: I don't understand all about it but when the energy gets sucked back the wheels stop.
Hey, will here! THIS is how a basic generator works:
I hope you don't mind me using this, HowStuffWorks! Read about it: HowStuffWorks.com - Generators ANDREW: I'm sure they won't mind..... If you have the money...... Will!: oh well, they can't see it anywayz... this knol isn't published.Speaking of which...
Task 4 (Will!)
1st & Foremost, how it stops: Lots of people are saying that RBS works better, Such as on V is for Voltage, where "miro13car" says: "I cannot imagine NOT to have regen on my Tidal Force bike. It slows down bike like a wonder. Think about it - wet rims , how do you brake 29kg bike on friction - very scary, very dangerous.
Just touch of left brake engages rbs - this is beauty of this, no friction, just electromagnetic field slows you down. On steep down slope just merely touch of lever slows you down".
Andrew task 4
Generators are meant for converting mechanical energy into electrical energy. Here's a video on designing your own simple generator. Simple generator This pretty much showed me the build of a generator. The copper coil has billions of electrons in it, completely unmoving. When the magnet spins, the south end of the magnet attracts the electrons, which follow the spinning magnet in a circle around the coil. The flow of electrons creates a surge of energy through the lightbulb, illuminating it.Sam: Task 4, (October 30, 2009) The web links on how to build a generator helped clarify how a generator works. Thanks for posting them! It would be awesome to make the little cardboard generator. I am still not sure how the RBS stops the bike without friction though. Do the magnets change go from positive to negative (reversing the flow of electrons) when you squeeze the brake? After going to the Bike Plan meeting Tuesday, I thought a little bit about how our bike sharing idea would work in Albany. The speaker suggested we check out the BIXI program in Montreal, so I did. The BIXI bikes seem pretty neat. Take a look. http://montreal.bixi.com/home/home-bixi You have to be 14 years old to use them though. And you need a credit card subscription. I think the speaker at the bike meeting Tuesday night said that the BIXI bikes could use (or save) solar power, but I didn't find any information on that. It seems that a bike share program could work in Albany like it does in Montreal. I am not sure if the regenerative brake idea would be part of the plan.
Boys Task 5: For November 6, 2009
The boys team will continue to develop and deepen their understanding of energy generation and storage technologies and seek applications of those technologies to development of a regenerative brake systems for the FLL project. Team members will pursue and develop the ideas they proposed during class last Friday (Oct. 30): Andrew & Luke: Work together to design and develop the prototype bike generator system Andrew described during class Friday. (Andrew and his Dad are working on building a generator using bike parts.) Ben: Think about how one might design and perhaps expand on the generator circuit for an RBS system (e.g. by incorporating a regenerative braking component into the generator model Michele brought to the FLL class.) William: Think further about and develop the model generator/RBS system that you proposed to the group last Friday. Sam: Deepen understanding of generators by building a basic model generator (i.e. the one Andrew posted last week on the Knol) For Friday: Each team member should write a brief progress report that addresses the following issues: - Describe what you have learned about how energy generation and storage systems (e.g. generators) work. - Assess the progress you made this week on your individual projects. E.g. What went well? What kinds of questions, puzzles, or problems emerged? What did you do to overcome them? - Consider and discuss how your individual projects might apply the larger FLL project. - What do you suggest should be the next steps in the development of the project? Please submit your reports to the Knol under the Boys Task 5 section. Also, please be prepared to present your reports to the group. We're looking forward to hearing what you learned. Best, Michele, AlBen task(5) My task was to measure current and voltage produced by my generator using the nxt. The maximum current was about 260mA(milliamps) and the max voltage was 6 volts(the max that the probe can read is 6 volts). The power I generated by turning the crank was 1.560W(6V*0.260A). I wrote a program in Robolab to collect data. I collected the data on the nxt and downloaded it to Robolab. I was able to see a graph of voltage vs. time and another graph of current vs. time. This is a really cool applet of how a generator works. My data looks sort of like the data shown on the applet.
I also wanted to connect a bike pedal to the generator. However, I don't have parts to be able to do this. But I'll bring in the pedal so you can see how it would work.
Andrew task 5: making progress with the generator...
Sam Task 5: I did not make much progress on building my generator this week. We tried to re-make the generator with cardboard again, but was just too flimsy. My Dad and I went out and bought some plexiglass and epoxy so I can make the generator out of that and the windings won't collapse the housing. Also, we'll be able to see the magnets spin through the plexiglass. As I collected new parts and after reading Ben's post for Task 5, I feel like I have more questions than answers about how the generator works and makes electricity. I'm not sure about the difference between watts and volts and amps. I understand that the when I ride a bike I generate energy and that when I stop I loose energy and that we can store that energy somehow. And I understand that if you spin magnets inside or around a coil of copper wire you get electricy. But I don't really understand what electricity is or where it comes from. I plan to work on that with my Dad this weekend. I feel like I have lot to do this weekend to understand how the generator makes electricty and how the generator (or dynamometer) might apply to a bike sharing program.
Ben task(6)
I have measured the voltage and current on the generator and figured out the power in watts. It was 1.5 watts which is not a lot. To light a florescent light bulb it usually takes 14 watts, which isn't a lot. To light a incandescent light bulb it can take up to 100 watts, which is a lot. I also found out that the dynamometer generates electricity cool huh! Sam Task 6 I will begin to outline past research on powerpoint. I don't know powerpoint, so I'll orient myself to that program this weekend too. I am not quite sure if I should outline past research on bike share programs in general or outline the research we did for the project so far. Luke Task 6 We could show a tri-fold board with our research on it. I will start explaining how we where thinking of transportation issues in Albany, then Ben will say we decided to focus on biking because we all ride bikes, Sam will explain how we started researching bikes and found that Kenetic energy is lost where you hit the brakes, Andrew will explain that we found regenerative braking devices to save this energy to be used again, William says we also found that the wheel could also power a small generator, I will say that we all needed to understand how a generator works:I think we could have each person a part of the generator: Ben would be the crank, I'll be the two wires, Sam would be the coil, Andrew would be the magnet, and Willem would be the light- bulb. Each of us would explain what we do and how we help light the light-bulb. After we show how a generator works, we could show the generators we built and how it could make energy on a bike with the regenerative brake system or by pedaling. Then we could ask the judges if they have any questions.
Presentation
- Description and Explanation of Problem - Luke biking and why - Explanation of Solution - Ben bike sharing with smart technology bixi solar powered bike sharing system
- Precedence - hot topic in Albany right now - Andrew attended master bike plan meeting - Sam
talked to bike planning consultant about our idea
field experience - took bus/bike/walk
adding biking to riverfront
bike sharing will fit nicely
new technology makes it COOL
Big Obstacles - how does a generator work - introduce
skit - how do we store the energy
battery vs capacitor - can we recover energy from braking
waste kinetic energy when braking - let's recover it instead using a generator
- how do we recover the stored energy Demonstrate our System bike to generator, capacitor or battery, card delivery
Further Study - what do we use if for? Power crosswalks, lighted signs, streetlights, billboards
Andrew task 6 here are some lego lords logo suggestions (uncopyrighted).................(note that i can change the color if necessarary)
I would like to show the rest, but apparently we have exceeded the image limit and are not allowed to show any more. I don't get it!!!! We only have seven pictures!!!!!!!!! Boys Task 7 Based on Monday's post-Siena Lab meeting, the main objective for the Boys Team is to write drafts for your part of the FLL presentation. On Friday, the boys will begin to flesh out the parts (who says's what when) of the presentation. Also, as part of the process, the boys will practice fielding questions about their project. For Friday, add your respective "scripts" into the outline below. Remember: We have only 5 minutes, so clarity of your ideas and writing reigns surpreme here. Sam will prepare a power-point presentation for Friday as well for the team to give feedback on. Presentation Outline I. Description & Explanation of Problem - Luke At the beginning, we were thinking of transportation issues like when someone would like an efficient car, but they can't afford it, or bicycles not being able to have safe rides on streets or how roads are invading animal habitats. Then we picked from one of those topics by voting, and decided to go with bikes. (gesture to who is next)II. Solution - Ben Bike sharing initiative with smart technology e.g. a bixi solar powered bike sharing system
III. Precedence - Andrew A. Bike sharing programs are hot topic now in Albany... adding biking to riverfront
bike sharing will fit nicely, new technology makes it COOL
IV. Methods - Sam We attended master bike plan meeting in Albany, talked to bike planning consultant about our idea, did a field experience (took bus/bike/walk), attended UA sustainability conference and interviewed director of sustainabilty about UA bike share program...
V. Obstacles & Challenges - William - Can we recover energy from braking and drive systems? Quick answer: Wasted kinetic energy when braking - let's recover it instead using a generator; Key issues: How do we store the energy, how does a genrator work, what do we do with the stored energy, how do we incorporate the design into design of the bike; use battery vs capacitor Skit - For crank: Luke is the crank. I'm what starts everything. The crank has to turn to make the coil turn. I can attach to the bike pedal so when you pedal, I turn. VI. Demonstrate our System - Andrew (Luke?) bike to generator, capacitor or battery, card delivery
Further Study and Connections - Power crosswalks, lighted signs, streetlights, billboards
Presentation Materials & Props (TBD)
Ben's lines for presentation 11/20/09 BIXI is an example of a simple self-serve bike sharing system. Users can easily type in their code or BIXI-key, then borrow their bike. The pricing system is designed for short rides. A person can sign up for an annual subscription of $78 or $5 for a 24 hour period. Any ride less than 30 minutes is included in the cost, encouraging frequent short rides. The station holds bike docks and a solar power-run pay station, that automatically goes into a "sleep" mode to avoid energy draining when not in use. Andrew task 7 Bike sharing programs are a perfect way to spread energy-saving bikes. Usually, bike sharing programs are meant to provide transportation to those who cannot afford it. Now, with new technology, we can add to that by installing generators to bike wheels, which will spin the coil instead of by hand. There are an average of thirty one bikes per square mile in an urban area. If we could provide some of these bikes with generators, it will increase the amount of energy produced by the city, and thus make the world a little greener. GREAT 'bike sharing programs in other areas' links... http://www.nyc.gov/html/dcp/pdf/transportation/bike_share_part1.pdf part 1 http://www.nyc.gov/html/dcp/pdf/transportation/bike_share_part2.pdf part 2 http://www.nyc.gov/html/dcp/pdf/transportation/bike_share_part3.pdf part 3 This concludes our half of the knol. BIKE ON!
Girls' Problem - Change Albany's Car Centric Culture
Albany is the capital of New York State and as employs many state workers, many of which work in downtown Albany. Many other types of businesses reside in downtown Albany further increasing the number of people driving into and out of Albany. Traffic congestion is a problem on the major roadways into Albany including I787, I87, and I90. Parking is a major frustration in downtown Albany.Albany has a car centric culture. Most people feel that they need their car and don't consider using public transportation or other alternative types of transportation. One solution to reduce parking frustration and increase the use of public transportation and increase the use of the public underground corrider system in Albany is being developed. Imagine a shuttle system from 3 or 4 suburbs around Albany. Commuters would park in parking garages or parking lots and take a shuttle from their location to downtown Albany. The shuttle would run regularly during the morning and evening hours and would be a direct route with no stops between the suburb location and downtown Albany.
The ride in the shuttle would be an enjoyable experience with comfortable seating, drop down screens, and wireless access.
When commuters are dropped of downtown, they would enter the underground system. Currently, Albany's underground system is under-utilized with very few shops/attractions in that space. As more commuters are brought to this space, more businesses will be attracted to the space. As more commuters us the underground space, it may be expanded to grow underneath the city.
Solutions
Park and Ride 1. Parking Lots and Parking Garages 2. Shuttle System - like the express subway - goes directly to downtown Albany - 3. 3 or 4 shuttle routes - Clifton Park, East Greenbush, ??? 4. Drop off at "Downtown Underground"Subterranean Underground Walkways 1. Brand our underground as "Downtown Underground" 2. Underground is underutilized 3. Make underground more inviting to commuters 4. Improve underground
BEN
the new tech system for bikes is called regenerative biking brakes. when you brake The energy is given to the battery and also to the power store compartment. The energy stored in the battery could be used to provide power when going uphill. if the cyclist chooses to power their bike they with pedal power could store the energy in the battery. at a later date the cyclist could bring the bike to a plug in at a charging station to get money from the machine.Tasks
For each task, find examples. Write at least a paragraph that describes the example, identifies key components, describe whether it is working or not working in that setting. Would that model apply to us or would any parts of the model apply to a park and ride system in Albany or a subterranean underground downtown Albany. 1. Examples of Successful Park and Ride - Mary Overview of Successful Park and Rides Best Workplaces for Commuters Boulder's keys to success in mass transit
2. Example of "nice" shuttles - what features do they have? - Ivy
3. Examples of Successful underground "cities" - Lili
4. Find info about the underground systems in Albany - where should shuttle drop commuters? - Hannah
5. What types of shops/attractions work well in underground cities? - Lili
6. What types of activities are held in the Albany underground? - Julia
Girl's Research Summaries for Oct 8, 2009
FLL Park and Ride Examples (Mary)I read about the park and ride program in Boulder, CO. Boulder's park and ride program is part of a larger plan to use alternative forms of transportation. This means they want people to think about how to get around the city without always using their cars. They encourage people to park and ride, bike and ride, and walk and ride the bus.
They have identified ways to make the park and ride successful. These include:
- Friendly bus drivers
- big windows and doors on the bus
- safe places to park your car
- safe places to park your bike
- easy access to information about how to get where you want to go
- direct routes for short rides
- very little waiting
- safe, comfortable places to wait for the bus
- Consistent style on the buses so people feel at home
- reduced prices for annual passes called Eco passes
- advertising campaign to give people information
- program needs support from cities and areas involved
For this to work in Albany, we'd need to start on a much smaller scale than this program. However, we should take many of these suggestions to make even a small scale park and ride successful.
To learn more about Boulder's success, go to Boulder's website.
Underground systems and shuttle drop off site possibility in Albany (Hannah)
Empire State Plaza: Under the plaza, there is an "underground city" called the Concourse. It connects all buildings in the Plaza, including the New York State Museum, the Egg, the Corning Tower, and several other government buildings, including the State Capitol building. It features banks, food courts, restaurants, a police station, retailers, a visitors center and even a YMCA. Many state workers eat lunch at the Concourse, so it would be great if they had a shuttle to drop them off there as well. The shuttle could stop in front of the New York State museum. What types of activities are held in the Albany underground? (Julia) The underground area in Albany is mostly the Concourse of Empire State Plaza, and, as Hannah said, there are restaurants, a YMCA, stores, and a visitor's center, but I have seen concerts and craft festivals and art shows there, too. I think they also have performers, like clowns, and magic acts, and thing like that. Once, there was children's choir performing at Christmas, and we stopped to listen to them when we left a show at the Egg. The Egg is a large auditorium where bigger concerts and shows are held - it's not underground, but you can get to it from the concourse. We've also seen people speed-walking for exercise on the Concourse, so that's another activity. It's a good place to do that, because it's warm and dry. When I searched for "Activities at the Empire State Plaza Concourse" I did not find any sort of a publication that serves as a calendar that lists everything going on at the Plaza, so it looks as though it's up to individual vendors and performers to let everyone know that they are there. It might be good if the Concourse advertised more about what is going on there that the public might enjoy.
Here are some pictures of the concourse that I found (Lili):
Underground Cities (Lili):
There is, of course, the concourse under the Empire State Plaza, but I couldn't find any other underground cities close to us. Though I did find some underground cities in other states.
In Atlanta, Georgia there is an underground city that was built in 1969 near the intersection of the east and west MARTA rail lines. It was built using the advantage of the viaducts built over the city's many railroad tracks. It is used as a shopping and entertainment center.
Chicago Illinois has an underground tunnel system. It consists of four main tunnels, the largest covering about 10 blocks! It connects places like Randolph Street Station, the Chicago Culteral Center, a Macy's, James R Thompson center, City Hall, and subway stations.
Houston, Texas has a seven mile tunnel system set about 20 feet under Houston's downtown. It also has above ground skywalks. These systems link office towers and hotels and restaurants, etc. The main access to the Tunnels is the Walls Fargo Plaza.
To read about some other underground cities go to :
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Underground_city#United_States
What features "nice" shuttles have (Ivy)
Reclining seats, flat screen TVs, and a state-of-the-art stereo system.That's pretty much what people like.Carpeting and all-around cleanliness.Most shuttles are actually buses, though, so we might want to think monorail, instead.It is a good idea to have the news on, but of course making sure that nothing inappropriate comes on or parents will think aboutother transports, with good reason.I've found some really luxurious shuttles that make people relaxed, and thats what I think we would want to go for.One question, what are we looking into;Shuttles or a monorail-type thing?Girls Task 2: Proposal Ideas: Solutions and Justification (Due Oct. 15, 2009)
The next step for the girls FLL project is to further develop our solution for a park and ride. Select one or more of the following development areas. Generate at least one paragraph to address the following questions:- Identify local Park and Rides.
- Becca mentioned that a friend of Pats uses a park and ride.
- Where is it located?
- Where does it drop commuters off in Albany
- Do people use it year round or just during certain seasons?
- How many people use it? (this will provide info on what size shuttles should be used)
- What times is it in operation?
- Does it run just once into Albany and once out of Albany? Or more often?
- What do people like about it?
- Take a field trip!
- Once we identify local park and rides, we should take a ride and ask commuters why they ride them. What do they like? What would they change to make them better?
- Identify companies that sell shuttles
- Study other successful park and ride programs to learn more about what types of shuttles are used.
- What kinds of shuttles are available?
- Call a shuttle company and ask about their shuttles or find information online.
- Develop a set of questions to ask
- What types of amenities do riders like best?
- How do new customers decide on the size of the shuttles
- Is it better to have smaller shuttles with more trips or a larger shuttle for one trip
- Cost considerations?
- Driver considerations?
- Maintenance?
- Develop a set of questions to ask
- Because Albany has a small underground area compared to some of the larger cities, can we find similar successful uses of underground facilities?
- What kind of improvements are needed in Albany's underground?
- Who is the contact person for the underground area?
- Take a field trip and take some pictures of the underground.
- Come up with ideas to improve its appearance and make it more inviting.
- How can we improve the lighting?
Please post your proposals to the knol by Thursday. We'll use the FLL time Friday to settle on a working list of short and long term solutions the group can research further with specific doable tasks. (e.g., cost considerations, challenges to implementing proposal ideas, consideration of Albany-specific design features, long term improvements and plans, and the like).
Task 2 A Study of the Concourse in Albany - Mary I wanted to learn more about the concourse. So, we went to the concourse, took pictures, and asked questions. We spoke with Mary Meleco, a NYS Capital Site Interpreter in the Plaza Visitor Center office. Her office oversees all of the operations of the plaza. We also spoke with Kurt Vincent in the OGS (office of general services). He provided information about the costs to hold a fundraiser ($35 per day) for not-for-profit businesses and the cost to set up a business in the concourse ($150 per day).We learned the following:
- the concourse is 1/4 of a mile long and goes from the Capitol building to the NYS museum.
- the concourse connects to the eleven buildings of the Empire State Plaza
- approximately 13, 000 people use the concourse daily
- There is a shuttle service for NYS employees that picks them up at various locations around Albany and brings to the bus terminal inside the concourse
- The fee for this shuttle service is deducted from their paycheck
- This shuttle service uses Yankee trails buses.
- the concourse has a bus terminal that is only open to NYS employees using the NYS shuttle or tour groups
- CDTA has park and rides - Mary Meleco knew of one in Schodak, but said that there are more of them.
- The CDTA park and rides drop off on Madison in front of the NYS museum or on the Capitol side of the plaza.
- In the main section of the concourse it wasn't as dingy as we thought. Some of the sections were very dingy and boring.
- In the main section, they had paintings, sculptures, shops, cafeterias, restaurants, coffee stands, and banks. They also were holding the fall craft fair. Kurt Vincent said that they have more offerings and more traffic in the winter when it's cold.
- The concourse is closed from 11 pm to 6 am.
- Here are some of our pictures and a movie.
There's a bus terminal!
This was the dingiest section at the NYS museum end. Many of the lights were out and there was nothing on the walls. There wasn't much traffic here.
Arts and craft fairs are common in the colder months.
They have bike storage.
Underground Mall? (Lili)
One of the most popular places to go that is indoors is the mall. There is no mall in the city of Albany, but if there were one, it would probably become well used. If we figure out what things in the mall are the main attractions, that keep the people coming, we could try to add those things to the concourse.
The concourse already has some cool things like:
-Artwork
-Food courts
-YMCA
-A few retailers
Crossgates mall has more things like:
-Movie Theater!
-Apple store
-Better restaurants than McDonalds. Blech.
-A much larger selection of shops
That make people want to come. We could put some of these things in the concourse or build tunnels that connect the concourse to these things.
A big thing that the mall does much better than the concourse is: ADVERTISE!!!!
If people (like me until I did research) don't even know the concourse exists or what goes on there, what reason do they have to check it out and use it??
CDTA Future Plans (Kate) http://cdta.org/pdfs/future/Transit%20Development%20Plan%20January%202007%20Final.pdf
Here's another link you should DEFINATLY look at. http://www.cdta.org/pdfs/future/TSD_Albany_Report_Final.pdf http://cdta.org/ Michele! Lookie at this site! They make APPS! for you! wouldn't that be cool???? http://www.pocketprojects.net/ look at this site and scroll down to "Parking" http://www.nyjuror.gov/countyinformation/?albany
I think the most efficient way for us as children with limited resources to advertise for the CDTA would be to reach out to the people closest to us. Our parents work, right? Then why not try to reach their co-workers? We have non-robotics friends. So why not tell them as well?
My mom said to me, "We're all thinking, I didn't know about this, how could anyone else? But there's something called the demographic."
A demographic is who a company targets its advertising at. Let's say when Toys "R" Us was just beginning, they needed to advertise. Well, who were they going to target? Children. Not business people. Not college students. Children and families were and still are the demographic of Toys "R" Us. Then business people, workers and low-income families are the demographic of CDTA.
So think, do you think that the CDTA really doesn't advertise? Of course they do! But not to US.
I did some research and went on the following websites to look for Internet advertising:
Whitney Young Heath Care Center (WYHCC)
St. Peters Hospital
Hannaford
Price Chopper
Crossgates Mall
Colonie Center
NYS Education Department
NYS Legislature
Siena College
SUNY Albany College
Only WYHCC, Crossgates, Siena and SUNY had information about CDTA. And SUNY only had a phone number and Crossgates only had a sentence about getting a bus schedule.
So this brings me to conclude that CDTA needs to do a lot more internet advertising. When people are looking for jobs on websites, it's nice to know that you could use the bus if there's an emergency.
What are the advantages to using the parking system?
To the city:
The city of Albany authorizes the parking through the Albany Parking Authority, so all the money that people pay to park in the lots and garages goes straight into the Albany treasury. Not to mention the parking meters and how much they bring in a day.
To an individual:
It's more hygienic to take your car then the bus
You can listen to the radio and adjust the heat and A.C.
It might sometimes be faster if you have to go a far distance and you don't get on a express bus
What are the disadvantages to using the parking system?
To the city:
It makes the city more polluted
It takes up a lot of room
It brings the community together
It also gets money for the city AND is "Green"
To an individual:
Riding the bus saves money on gas
The bus usually gets you where you need to go on time
Buses are really easy to spot and bus stations are everywhere
It's easy to go on CDTA.com and plan your trip
Park and Rides -Maddie
CDTA has a Park and Ride system (which are the black dots on the map). They have a stop in Crossgates (A1). There are stops all over the region. Comfortable seats, nice service and clean buses. Fares are various depending on how far you are going. To Glens Falls, for instance, it costs $60.00 for ten rides. But one ride is $10.50.
Girl's Research Summaries for Oct 23, 2009
Our research on a park and ride system combined with expanding Albany's downtown underground has led us to the following conclusions:
It's a good idea, but:
- Park and ride options are already available in Albany
- Albany's downtown underground is bustling with approximately 13, 000 people
- What's missing is ADVERTISING! People aren't aware of the underground or of the park and ride options.
Advertising in Schools (Lili):
One idea (that may already exist, I don't know) is to advertise easy to read maps of public transportation and bike routes in colleges for the students to see. College students would probably use it because a lot of them don't have cars yet, and having they're parents drive them isn't usually an option.
We could also advertise the transportation maps in elementary or middle or high schools for those students to see. We could also try to get these schools to do the "bike to school day" thing, or other things like that that encourage alternative transportationPS. Another idea that was brought up last week, was putting public transportation as an option on mapquest.
Advertising in Coffee Shops and Libraries (Hannah)
A lot of coffee shops and libraries are visited and utilized by the college students Lili talks about above, plus a lot of other people! Often coffee shops will have billboards in them where you are allowed to tack advertisements and business cards (but be sure to talk to an employee before using it, some of them have limits as to the size of the advertisement etc etc.). I know for a fact there is one in the co-op and I think one in Perfect Blend, next to I Love Books. (376 Delaware Ave, Delmar, NY 12054).
1. Advertising at places like the Tulip Festival/Larkfest/Alive at Five and other city-sponsored public gatherings
2. Signs and posters in places people will see them
3. Maybe sponsoring an Albany Youth Soccer team or something
Word of mouth is good, too. You could say, "I took a Park-and Ride here." We could start a "Spread the Word" type of campaign. If you make it sound worthwhile, people will likely try it.
Advertising Ideas (Julia)
I think that people who don't ride the bus think it's crowded, expensive, dirty, smelly, and that it takes a long time to get where you want to go. But those things aren't really true, so maybe we should do a survey to find out the reasons that people don't want to ride the bus, and part of our advertising could be that we teach them that those ideas are mistaken.
Advertising ideas (Mary) There are some questions I had and I am putting theme into categories and the categories are: Where can we advertise? How can we advertise? and Questions we should answerWere could we advertise?:
the grocery store
the mall,
the museum
the egg
the Times Union Center
the Albany public library or other branches
the state university campus
These are some ideas but we have to find out if these places will let us advertise there. How could we advertise?
have the commissioner of jurors add two web links to their juror card, one to the cdta tool that helps you to define your route. The second to a youtube video of how to use the tool.
buy one get one free
half off day
some incentive
sale days for park and ride
check out the concourse webpage and see how they advertise now
Questions we should answer
how do other successful park and rides and downtown plazas advertise?
how does the NYS shuttle system advertise?
- How many people use Park and Rides in the Capital District?
- Where does CDTA advertise the Park and Rides?
- Who uses the Park and Rides the most? State workers?
Girls Task 4: The Transportation of Jurors (Due Oct. 30, 2009)
Posted by AmyWe think that focusing our attention on one area of life in Albany that could benefit from widespread use of alternative transportation options is the current jury situation. Jurors come to downtown Albany each week to temporarily work on juries. This creates a problem with parking in downtown. We would like to suggest that the court system of Albany partner with CDTA (Capital District Transportation Authority - remember? The Albany busing system?) to offer free busing to jurors serving in the Albany court system to help alleviate this parking congestion.
This week, you have assigned questions to answer. Look for your name after a question. You each should have 2 questions (okay, Ivy, my friend, you have 3 questions because I know you can handle it!!!)
Questions about Albany, the court system, and CDTA -
What is the population of Albany? (Julia)
What is "jury duty"? What are the people called who work on a jury? (Julia)
How many individuals come to the court house each week for jury duty?
o There are different types of trials (e.g., county, federal) (Mary)
What is the current parking situation in Albany around the court house? (Ivy)
o How much does parking cost per day? (Ivy)
o Where are parking garages close to the court house? (Ivy)
o What are the advantages to using the parking system? (Kate)
To the city?
To the individual?
o What are the disadvantages to using the parking system? (Kate)
To the city?
To the individual?
What advantages will there be for CDTA? (Madeline)
o Increased ridership?
o Increased awareness? (E.g. tendency to use more often?)
What advantages would there be for the court system? (Madeline)
o Timely jurors?
What advantages for the city of Albany? (Hannah)
o Less traffic congestion?
o Less pollution?
What difficulties or objections might CDTA have with our idea? (Lilianna)
o Cost?
Initially?
Over time?
What difficulties or objections might the court system have with our idea? (Lilianna)
o Cost?
Initially?
Over time?
What difficulties or objections might the city of Albany have with our idea?(Hannah)
o Does the city own parking garages? Would they lose revenue?
Has CDTA already partnered with the court system? What is their current relationship? (Mary)
The current population of the city of Albany is approximately 94, 000 people. (Julia)
Jury definitions: (Julia)
In a free country, such at the United States, people accused of a crime have the right to a trial where the evidence against them is considered by a group of 12 of their fellow Americans. The people who hear the evidence, and decide whether the accused person is guilty or innocent, are called "jurors." Any registered voter can be called to sit for a trial, and this is called "jury duty." It is called a "duty, " because it is something that American citizens should feel responsible for and privileged to do, since it is one of the great things about living in a free country!
DISADVANTAGES (Lili):
Disadvantages for the CDTA:If the court system and jurors used regular bus passes, I don't think there would be much of a disadvantage for CDTA. They would most likely be making even more money than usual.
Disadvantages for the Court System:
They would have to pay for all the Jurors
They would have to organize, each day, who gets which bus passes depending on who is picked for Jury duty.
They would have to inform all the Jurors about the new bus plan and maybe even teach them how to ride the bus.
Ideas for the Court System:
*They could ask the State to give them money for the bus passes (probably by overusing the words "green" and "efficient".) Or they could apply for other grants that would sponsor them. They could also ask for a discount from the CDTA. They could make it sound as if they would ONLY be doing this if they got a good deal and then the CDTA would probably give it to them because even giving them a discount would bring in a lot more money and business. And some of the Jurors might even be more encouraged to use the bus even after they are done with jury duty.
* Especially if they had been given money in a grant or something, the court system could hire someone to sort out all the bus planning and stuff.
*If they did hire someone, they could also have the same person teach the Jurors about the new bus plan.
Parking situation for Jury Duty (Ivy)
When I went to the Albany courthouse, besides a couple problematic signs, it seems like they're trying to make parking easier. But what about using buses and other means of transportation? They encourage it, but who pays attention to that? We might want to think of some ways to get people interested in alternative transportation. Here is what is on the insert card in the letter you get regarding parking and transports:
Parking:
Jurors are encouraged to use the CDTA bus transportation lines as there are minimal parking facilities in downtown Albany. For further information, please call CDTA at 482-8822 or visit www.cdta.org
The Crowne Plaza Parking Garage, located on the corner of Pine and Lodge Street, offers discounted juror parking at a daily rate of $6.00. Upon entering the garage, you will receive a ticket. Please bring this ticket for validation when reporting for service.
On-street parking is metered which is 12 minutes for .25 cents, with a maximum of two or four hours; expired meters will be ticketed. On-street parking is not recommended.
There is no reimbursement for transportation fares, parking lot fees or parking tickets.
I talked to the manager of the Crowne Plaza Parking Garage (his name was Darrell Lewis)and he said that sometimes they have to turn people away when they've got a full lot, but they have a couple parking garages down the street they refer the people to when they're full. He also said that the busiest days vary with what things are going on, but that his best answer would be Monday and Tuesday.
We're Going on an Expedition! - FLL Field Work
Your expedition is to be completed by Friday, Oct. 23, 2009.Without using your car, get to HENAA on Friday, Oct. 16, Friday, Oct. 23, or Friday, Oct. 30. If that's not convenient, pick a different destination and travel there without the use of your car. The idea is to travel somewhere you normally go, but to get there using an alternative mode of transportation than you normally use. So, if you typically ride your bike to the store, that's great. But for this assignment, we want a new transportation experience. Here are some questions to consider during your travels.
- Describe your mode of transportation and why you chose that mode.
- How much does it cost?
- Advantages
- Disadvantages
- How did you create your plan to get to the FMH and back home?
- How long did it take?
- Were you on time?
- Were you comfortable?
- Any surprises/glitches?
Q. What was your mode of transportation and why did you choose it?
A. We chose the bus. We chose that because it's easy.
Q. How much did it cost?
A. It cost $1.50 a person.
Q. How did you plan your route?
A. We went on the CDTA website and did the trip planner. It's really good.
Q. What are some advantages for your mode of transport?
A. Some advantages are saving money on gas, a reduced chance of an accident, and seeing people regularly on your commute.
Q. What are some disadvantages?
A. Some disadvantages are there that there is no place to be when waiting at all the stops for the bus. Some are just a sign. Not even a bench! And also there is a bigger risk of getting sick, from all the exposure to germs.
Q. How long did it take?
A. All in all, it took 52 minutes approximately.
Q. Were you on time?
A. Yes. We were 15 minutes early actually.
Q. Were you comfortable?
A. Yes. You have to sit next to people you don't know though, so that's a little uncomfortable. But the seats were cushioned (If a little worn).
Q. Was there any surprises/glitches?
A. Yes. One, The bus was nine minutes late and two, Madeline lost her shoe walking there.
Sam's Expedition Results: October 29, 2009 My Dad and I chose an alternative expedition. We walked to the local grocery store. We decided to walk because the store is only a 15 minute walk from our house. We did not bike there because crossing Colvin Avenue on a bike is dangerous, and there is no safe place to park our bikes. We identified several advantages to walking there: 1) We didn't pollute the air with car exhaust. 2) It was fun walking across the park! 3) It was good exercise. 4) We didn't use fossil fuels. And 5), We didn't pay for gas or bus fare. Walking is free! There were some disadvantages as well: 1) The trip was slower than going by car. Walking added 20 minutes to the time round trip. 2) You can not carry as much as when you use the car. We'll have to go back there again tomorrow to get the rest of the things we need. 3) You can not walk in bad weather. 4) You can only run one errand at a time. And 5), people do not stop for you at the crosswalk. I am not sure how our expedition might inform the bike sharing or braking ideas for the project. But we were surprised by the results of the activity. Dad was reminded how amazing cars really are. He said he loves cars. He also said that without a car he might not overstuff his life and schedule with tedious tasks and errands and that walking slowed the time and life to a natural pace. I was angry that even when there was a sign telling drives to stop for pedestrians who were at the crosswalk, nobody stopped to let us cross. See you later, SamGirls Task 5: Buses. Pedestrian Crosswalks. You Decide.
(Due Nov. 6)
Posted by AmyHello All,
We talked today about altering our focus for the girls' robotics project.
The two areas of focus are now: safety in pedestrian crosswalks and/or bus innovation.
Each girl should investigate each of these topics and be ready on Friday to present to our team her idea for the group's final project.
Michele had mentioned the use of sensors in crosswalks to alert drivers to the presence of pedestrians. The idea is that this alert would stop the drivers from barreling through pedestrian crosswalks. Al mentioned that something similar is already in place on the uptown SUNY Albany campus. Here is a link about that: http://www.albany.edu/news/update_4436.shtml
I mentioned what CDTA is doing that I considered "cutting edge" in bus technology. They are currently installing a bus rapid transit (BRT) system on Rte. 5 (Central Ave) running between Albany and Schenectady. Project components include:
High capacity hybrid electric BRT-styled vehicles
GPS-based mobile data communication
Advanced fare collection systems (meaning you pay your fare before you get on the bus)
Security cameras on buses and at stations
Real time next bus arrival signs (cool!)
Pedestrian and bicycle accommodations including sidewalk improvements, crosswalks, signal modifications, and bike racks (with this component maybe we could combine our interest in crosswalks and buses!)
Short sections of bus-only lanes
Traffic Signal Priority for BRT buses
Blue light phones networked to the 911 system
Public art
Shared Use Park and Ride lots
(from CDTA website)
In addition, the bus stops will be solar powered. Very cool.
Here is a link to a brochure about the CDTA BRT system:
http://www.cdta.org/pdfs/bus%20rapid%20transit%20BRT/CD-076-01%20BRT_BroC3.pdf
Here is a link to a newsletter about the CDTA BRT:
Remember, we are not suggesting that we "do the BRT system! Yeah!" We are looking at the existing system and see how it could be improved. Or what innovation we would suggest. This might require looking at similar BRT systems in other similar sized cities to see what cool, neato things they have added that CDTA didn't add into their plan.
Or in the case of sensors in pedestrian crosswalks we might suggest that CDTA incorporate them into their plan for future access to their bus stops. Or that the City of Albany utilize them in their (I'm making this up) Master Pedestrian Plan!
From Lili (11/3/09) Here is the link she found that has cool videos about safer crosswalks. One that lights up and Daylighting.Safe crosswalks
Task 5 (Mary)
Check out this website about a company called Lightguard that sells additions to make crosswalks safer. They have a cool animated picture.
I also liked the video on Lili's streetfilms website that talks about traffic calming. The video title is Rethinking Streets in Paris. In Paris, they have cobblestones and the bumps automatically make people drive slower.
I liked Amy's idea of combining a crosswalk with a busy intersection to get to the new BRT on Central. Because Central is 4 lanes, people think they can drive fast. However, there are lots of bikers and pedestrians. Cobblestones at certain intersections would make it safer for pedestrians to get to the BRT bus stop because the cars would drive slower due to the bumpy cobblestones. This also goes along with Kate's idea of ways to make riding the bus "cool". A crosswalk that blinks is cool!
I would like to make a model out of lego by creating a bumpy road, the intersection, and the built-in lights. I also like the blinking crosswalk signs. We can model those in lego too. Some crosswalks use a button that you can push or a pad on the ground that you step on to activate the lights. We can do either in lego by using the touch sensor to tell the NXT when to turn the lights on.
I'll try to build some of these things by Friday and bring it to HENAA.
Katey Girli
http://www.enlighter.org/projects/air-crosswalk
My air-crosswalk idea:
It would be cool if we could make a model of this because I think this is a really good idea. Only we could add a stop signal. When a pedestrian steps onto a pressure pad thingie, a solar-powered stop sign would fold down from on top of the lights, and it would completely stop traffic. And, as a backup, in case a light goes out, the crosswalk could be in a crazy design, like swirls, and would be glow-in-the-dark.
My bus idea is a double-decker bus. It could glow-in-the-dark. That way people could spot the buses in the dark.
Task 5 (Madeline)
Along crosswalks there could be red flashing lights when someone is walking on it. How they activate the lights is by stepping on a pad that is on the ground. People would know to step on it because it could have a sign that says "Step on pad for green light." And then a red light turns red almost right after people step on it but if there isn't a red light or stop sign that lights up red and cars have to stop.
Dad took Kate and Madeline on a field trip to the SUNYAlbany crosswalks on Thursday night. Here are couple of pictures they took of the sensor pillars and the pedestrian sign that lights up to alert drivers of pedestrians in the crosswalk.
For the buses I got this picture that someone might have made up but it's really, really cool! Maybe we should do something like that. But it would take a long time to build. That would be so cool though. Also along side of the cars on the other side could be a bike lane for bikers. That would be so cool and fun to ride on! Like if it wasn't pavement but like the stuff on the playground at the Crossings.
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=881516&page=2
Girls Task 6: Pedestrian Safety Problem and Solution
(Due Nov. 13)
Posted by Amy and Michele* Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system is coming to Albany and will connect Albany and Schenectady along Route 5. In Albany, Route 5 is called Central Ave. and in Schenectady Route 5 is called State St.
* We are suggesting that CDTA add a pedestrian bridge to connect Colonie Center and Northway Mall. The reason Colonie Center was chosen was because it is the planned site of a major bus stop on the BRT system. Here is a link to a CDTA newsletter that mentions this planned stop: http://www.cdta.org/pdfs/future/Bus%20Rapid%20Transit%20Newsletter%20July%2008.pdf
* We also want to suggest that CDTA add at least 2 lighted crosswalks to improve pedestrian access to BRT stops on busy Central Ave. (in Albany) and State St. (in Schenectady). We should suggest one improved crosswalk in Albany and on in Schenectady. Here is link to information about the Schenectady area around the BRT sites: http://www.cdta.org/pdfs/future/Bus%20Rapid%20Transit%20Newsletter%20March%2007.pdf
Assignments:
Lili, Hannah, Julia, Ivy - research about pedestrian bridges -
where are they used? how much do they cost? what design options are
currently used? Considerations for our area (snow, etc.)?
Mary, Madeline, and Kate - crosswalks - look at a map of Central Ave.
where are the best, busiest locations? Where should a crosswalk go? Middle
of street? Intersection? What's the technology? Old technology vs. new
technology. What options should we consider? Flashings signs too? Cost?
Installation issues in the northeast? Maintenance issues?
Task 6
Katey Girli and Madeline
11/10/09
Where are the best, busiest locations?
Schenectady: The intersection of Jay St and State St (central ave) by Proctors.
Albany: 488 Central Ave, (Honest weight food co-op)
Where should a crosswalk go?
Middle of street? vs. Intersection
Really, that would all depend on the street.
What's the technology?
Some new crosswalk technology is at SUNYA, at the entrance to the dorms. At each entrance to the crosswalk, there are two short, white poles. They sense when someone is walking through them and it sends a message to the crosswalk sign, which in turn blinks yellow.
Old technology vs. new technology.
The new technology, (see above) works well, but there is a big flaw. The pedestrian can't see the sign blinking. They just have to assume it worked, and step out into heavy traffic. What if it didn't work? But then again, the old technology is reflective paint.
What options should we consider?
We have found things like embedded lights, (http://www.walkinginfo.org/pedsmart/tlite.htm) an infrared sensor for seeing when people are waiting to cross,
(http://www.walkinginfo.org/pedsmart/infred.htm) an animated eyes display which tells people to look ways, (http://www.walkinginfo.org/pedsmart/eyes.htm) and an illuminated pushbutton, which tell people to push the button once and cross at the OK. (http://www.walkinginfo.org/pedsmart/iloom.htm)
Flashings signs too?
Flashing signs are good, but to the drivers, NOT to the pedestrians. If you test out SUNYA's crosswalk system, you'll see the MAJOR positive effect on drivers.
Cost?
The cost of a basic crosswalk (1): $100. So two would be $200 etc
Installation issues in the northeast?
Issues could include pipe damage, it would cost a lot money and there would be traffic.
Maintenance issues?
"Older style heads have required a lot of maintenance. Newer locations are better. Proper initial installation is important to long life." (Referring to Kirkland's flashing crosswalks. Kirkland, Washington.)
Hannah- Pedestrian Bridges
Okay first of all... They have some really cool designs out there:
Yay! Gotta love that orange thing.
These three are scaled down, so google image search "pedestrian bridges" to view them in all their glory. Also, not all of them go over roads, but you get the idea. As for how much they cost:
"Pedestrian bridges and tunnels can be very costly to build. Bridges over an arterial street will likely cost more than $1.5 million and will often require extensive ramps. The high cost of such grade separation should be considered along with security issues, drainage problems, lighting needs and maintenance." -Quoted from: http://www.saferoutesinfo.org/guide/engineering/pedestrian_and_bicycle_bridges_and_tunnels.cfmBut, as you can see, they look really cool when they ARE built. And statistically, when people use them on a regular basis, pedestrian/bicycle crashes can decrease by 91%. But only when people utilize them!!
It's best if bridges are built in areas that do NOT require ramps to be built, as this adds to the cost. Take a look at these pictures- the bridges run from one building/cliff to the other so you don't need to build any ramps. In the largest picture, the bridge connects to two very large buildings across a long stretch of busy road.
Bridges are essentially the same as elevated walkways, so don't come and give me crap about how this looks more like a walkway then a bridge! THEY HAVE THE SAME EFFECT!
Also, building bridges enforces the idea of "building up/down" which takes up less space then "building out/around" and is better for the environment. Spread out cities cause more trees to be cut down, whereas building up has all kinds of benefits and looks awesome.
Pictures of Semi-local Pedestrian Bridges and Nationally Used Bridge Designs (Ivy) I found a picture of a kind-of local pedestrian bridge(not in Albany exactly)like here:
This is the pedestrian bridge that leads to the Great Escape in Lake George, NY, which you are probably pretty familiar with because of the Read-to-Succeed program they use. I think this is a really good way to keep people safe from cars, seeing as this is a four-lane highway. Like Hannah said, pedestrian bridges come in really cool designs, like this one: 
I believe this one might go to a university of some sort. Here's another pic: 
I think this one might be in Arizona. It say it right on it. And it's got a bus under it!!!!! they got it all figured out. Here's a different kind of one: 
This one's a design. I don't know if it's meant for outdoors, but it looks pretty darn expensive. I do think it might get people walking more if they had cool high-tech pedestrian bridges to walk on. Here's the last one: 
I think it's over some train tracks, but it's another kind of bridge, and it'd be cool to walk on it. I had fun finding pictures, and since I wasn't there Monday I hope these are what we're looking for. - Ivy Later- Hey, guys, look-I on Google images and found a picture of a different kind of dynamometer! 
I don't think it would work with Mary's idea, and I think the one on the board would work best, but we should look at different ones anyway. Good learning. While I was researching I found that for Mary's idea we would have to tweak dynamometers a bit to make them store the energy that they would collect because the dictionary definition of dynamometers says: A dynamometer or "dyno" for short, is a device for measuring force or power. For example, the power produced by an engine, motor or other rotating;a measuring instrument designed to measure power Yeah. Notice that it only says "measuring" instrument instead of "storing" instrument, but what a is great idea without a couple simple problems to go with it? My only concern is if we wanted to try to really get it into action we'd have to convince a government official that we should use it without a display of some sort and then let them handle the messy part. We couldn't build it by ourselves.Mary's lines for presentation (11/18/09)
Well, we practice with the Lego Lords team. They were learning about generators and we couldn't help but learn about them too. It gave us the idea of using dynomometers to store energy. W know that dynomometers can't store energy. Their purpose is for measuring force and power. But if we modified them a little, the idea just might work. If we put energy saving dynonometers in before crosswalks, we will collect the most energy. If we do this, people will slow down when they see the red lights and that will make it even safer to use the crosswalks. The kinetic energy of the cars rolling over the dynonometer can be converted to electrical energy. It can power the signal lights and the sensors used in the crosswalk. Additionally, the extra energy can power the street lights.
Kinetic energy of the cars is moving energy of the cars that is converted to rotating energy of coils of wire, that is converted to electrical energy that travels along wires.
Picture of how dynamometer might be designed.
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