InTheCityToday.com Raleigh (pronounced rah-lee) is the capital of the state of North Carolina and the seat of Wake County. Raleigh is known as the “City of Oaks” for its many oak trees. It is the second most populous city in North Carolina after Charlotte.[3] The estimated population on July 1, 2008 was 380,173.[3] [4] Since 2006, Raleigh's municipal population has surpassed those of Minneapolis, Tampa, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, and St. Louis, and it is the 15th fastest growing city in the United States. Its population has grown by more than 100,000 since 2000, an increase of nearly 40%.Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill make up the three historically primary cities of the Research Triangle metropolitan region. The regional nickname of "The Triangle" originated after the 1959 creation of the Research Triangle Park, located between the cities of Raleigh and Durham. The Research Triangle region encompasses the U.S. Census Bureau's Combined Statistical Area (CSA) of Raleigh-Durham-Cary in the central Piedmont region of North Carolina.The estimated population of the Raleigh-Durham-Cary CSA was 1,635,974 as of July 1, 2007, with the Raleigh-Cary Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) portion estimated at 1,047,629 residents.[5] Most of Raleigh is located within Wake County, with a very small portion extending into Durham County[6]. The towns of Cary, Garner, Wake Forest, Apex, Holly Springs, Clayton, and Knightdale are some of Raleigh's primary nearby suburbs. find source @ www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raleigh,_North_Carolina
|
|
Dental Care?
Rich, Smith & Tart
|
|
Real Solutions to $4/gallon Gas and a Sedentary Lifestyle
Are you tired of hearing about high gas prices? So am I. Sure, the federal government should find a way to regulate the overseas oil futures market to prevent speculators from artificially driving up the price by about $1.20 per gallon. But I’m also tired of hearing about it, and burning oil more cheaply is not a long-term solution. |
| Home |
| News |
| Neighborhood |
| Contact Us |
| Search |
|
||||||
Word of the Day: gravid \GRAV-id\
adjective
brought to you by Merriam-Webster
| Real Solutions to $4/gallon Gas |
|
|
|
| Newsflashes | |
| Saturday, 09 August 2008 | |
|
Real Solutions to $4/gallon Gas and a Sedentary Lifestyle
Are you tired of hearing about high gas prices? So am I. Sure, the federal government should find a way to regulate the overseas oil futures market to prevent speculators from artificially driving up the price by about $1.20 per gallon. But I’m also tired of hearing about it, and burning oil more cheaply is not a long-term solution. As a pedestrian/bicyclist advocate, for years I have heard people say — with some indignation — “Well if gas prices were $4/gallon like they are in Europe, then people would REALLY start thinking about transportation alternatives.” Well guess what, folks? Gas prices ARE $4/gallon in the U.S. now, and the amount we drive has only decreased by a tiny fraction. That’s because all transportation is a derivative of land use—we drive because we have no choice.
Owning an automobile has become a baseline cost just to exist in America with a decent standard of living. The freedom and independence cars were intended to provide has gradually given way to dependence on cars for almost every single trip. The reason Europeans drive less is because the built environment supports walking and bicycling for some trips, not just because gas is $9/gallon.
What I hear people saying now is that surely the high gas prices have made it easier to make the case for transportation choices. The answer is that in the short-term, yes, there has been more TALK about transit and more pedestrian-oriented land use patterns. But it was way back in the 1970s that the pendulum began swinging back toward downtowns. That was when we stopped allowing transportation engineers to blast highways through our downtowns, obliterating many thriving black business districts and communities. Thirty years later, downtowns are finally coming back to life, due in part to changing demographics.
The benefit of walking and bicycling isn’t just that the planet will be inhabitable for a little longer. It’s free exercise! A physically active lifestyle makes you live longer and more healthfully. Pull that dusty bike out of the garage, and also get involved in community planning efforts to create more walkable neighborhoods. Not because of the cost of gas — because it’s a healthy lifestyle. Steven Waters is a citizen advocate for smart growth and an active lifestyle where walking and bicycling are real choices for transportation and recreation. In his real life, he is an interactive media programmer. Source: newraleigh.com
LivingStreets.com |
|
| Last Updated ( Thursday, 13 November 2008 ) | |
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
| Laughter is by definition healthy.~Doris Lessing |
|
|
