It’s time to take a novel approach to transportation, given the continuing growing congestion problems.

A professor of sustainability at Australia’s Curtin University, Peter Newman, presented just what that could look like when he visited the Pottstown campus of the Montgomery County Community College. He was invited by  state Rep. Joe Ciresi, D-146th Dist., who is trying to make good on a campaign promise to search for alternatives to traffic headaches on Route 422, writes Evan Brandt in The Pottstown Mercury.

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Newman has been a loyal advocate for light rail travel as a transportation alternative to the automobile. It’s more efficient, reduces greenhouse gas emissions and could generate solar power. Light rail, he believes,  tends to increase the value or nearby real estate, particularly when “transit-oriented-design” ensures redevelopment near rail stations is geared specifically to benefit from the access rail provides.

Newman also said Asian nations are on onboard with light rail projects,  and added that 82 Chinese cities are building metros and high speed rail between cities. The system in Shanghai carries eight million passengers per day.  Also, 51 Indian cities are building metros at any city over 1 million people and even cities in the Middle East, fossil fuel capital of the world, are building rail.

To read the complete story click here.

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