This is just a reminder: Students age 18 and younger can ride Valley Metro buses for free when the show the a driver a valid school ID. I don't think this program got the attention it deserved when Valley Metro launched it last year, because I keep coming across parents who mention something about needing to get their kids places and have no idea that this is even an option. It provides a little freedom to kids who aren't yet driving, and can save harried parents the hastle of trying to arrange shopping trips and the like. Since there's a Valley Metro bus going right past or near every City school, and both Tanglewood and Valley View Malls are on their routes, I think that pretty much covers all the bases.
So, remember, kids 18 and younger ride free. And it generally takes only 30 minutes or so to get where you're going on a Valley Metro bus, longer if you are traveling from and to the extreme ends of routes. Even then, bring a book and get some reading time in.
UPDATE: It turns out Roanoke City schools (or at least William Fleming) issued new IDs that include a misprinted year. Some kids are being forced to pay full price or are being turned away from the buses (justifiably so; the drivers have no way of verifying whether or not a kid is trying to use an expired ID to get a free trip). The schools are working to correct the problem, but it might be awhile before it gets worked out.
By now, you've probably already run across
this: The Art Museum of Western Virginia will become the Taubman Museum of Art, named after the museum's largest doners, Ambassador Nick and Jenny Taubman. What does that have to do with a blog about transportation and energy use in Southwest Virginia? Well, its because of one of the primary missions of the new Taubman Museum: Education. More specifically, distance education.
The museum already uses the
Tandberg teleconferencing technology to reach out to students and teachers all across Southwest Virginia. From Scott Crawford, Deputy Director of Education at the recently-renamed museum:
Basically, by using the Internet, we can conduct a lesson with students literally anywhere in the world so long as they have a comparable system and access to the Internet... In addition to conducting lessons, we have also conducted professional development training for teachers in deeper southwestern Virginia. This allowed museum staff to interact with educators in the region without having to take the time, or the resources, to travel several hours away.
To the extent that the museum has a territory, its territory is
huge, and the vast majority of it is rural. Busing kids in from Giles County, Covington, or even farther away is not only expensive in terms of running a bus back and forth, but it the time it takes out of the school day can be significant. Through this effort by the museum, not only does it help keep vehicles off the road, it provides educational opportunities to kids and schools who might otherwise miss out on what should prove to be a top-notch cultural institution.
This enterprise is also a good example of how successful teleconferencing and telework in general can be. We need to rethink our idea of what commuting is to incorporate the Internet age more fully: Commuting goes beyond the choice of what vehicle you choose to take into work, but whether or not you need to take a vehicle at all. The availability of sophisticated teleconferencing software like the Tandberg system, the increasing speed of internet communication and broader availability of wireless hotspots, and related technological developments make it easier to integrate work and all of its necessary tools into a home office. This means thinking of broadband penetration into our most rural counties in terms of mobilty and transportation - a fast internet connection can provide the same access to goods, services, and even employment as a highway in many cases.