by Erica Michelle

Created on: October 15, 2009   Last Updated: October 18, 2009

The possibilities for local transport can be much more creative than we typically assign. Usually, people will imagine that local transport is boring. It's your typical bus and subway package. How are you getting home, somebody might ask a person who uses their citys local transport system. Oh, they will reply. I am taking my BMW. I did not know you had a BMW, says the first person. I do not, replies the next. BMW stands for bus, metro, walk. It is my preferred combination vehicle of transport.

Urban design can be much more thrilling than your mere BMW however. Yet the point is, whether your daily commute to work is as exciting as a rollercoaster at Disney, or whether its the average log across the cityscape on a bus, public transport conserves energy and is a sustainable choice in the design of a city community.

There are also new technologies which are more beneficial for the environment, such as wind power, solar power and water power. There are even cars which exist that run on hydrogen fuel, and only require water to run. Imagine, a city whose entire web of transportation vehicles, whether they be cars, buses, subways or other, run on clean and sustainable energy sources.

In my personal journey to becoming a responsible citizen of the world, I pay attention to the choices I make and how they relate to energy cost. Though I have a driving license, I rarely choose to drive. I prefer to take public transport or carpool.

Speaking of the public transport system in Montreal, I am finding it to be more and more exciting each day. I pretend I walk with the newness of a child, never before having ridden the bus, or taken the subway (we call it the metro, to clarify). The humming of the bus, the speed of the machine as it races along the roadway, the tipping and turning of it as it rounds a corner. I do feel like, if I close my eyes, I could be in Disney world.

There are also ways to ride in style. One can surf the metro as though they are surfing waves in the metro. Simply do not hold on to the bars. You can also enjoy the journey by communicating with your local transport service operatives. This is something I have as of yet felt too shy to do, yet I am planning on it. I am curious about what they love about their jobs, and what makes their days.

We do benefit from conserving energy. We can expend it on more useful pursuits, such as our passions! That is a hypothesis of mine: that in this age of becoming more sustainable and responsible citizens of the Earth, we will conserve our energy expenditures, and direct our own, personal energy towards more sustainable pursuits in our own lives.

Whether it be writing, dancing, gardening, working with children, singing, creating music, cooking delicious food, traveling the world, or simply raising a family, we will find the energy to do it with passion, with style, and with thrill. The same thrill, perhaps, one can experience while riding the metro.

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