Hard to do vs hard to figure out

I'd like to argue for a second that better websites might do more to stop global warming than hybrid cars....

Sometimes it's easier to just go with what you know than to try something new. Case in point - I was down in DC earlier this week, and even though I had a car and free parking at my final destination, I ended up taking the Metro to my workshop rather than driving - not because it was faster or cheaper, but just because it was easier. I understand the Metro; but I get lost driving around DC on my own. Likewise, when I first moved to the NYC area, I tended to walk or take cabs more frequently from point-to-point in Manhattan...then, after a I'd figured out the baroque and arcane subway system (and no longer found myself mysteriously deposited in Brooklyn at random intervals) I used it instead.

Now I live in Pittsburgh and one of the fringe benefits of my job is a free bus pass. So, I take the bus everywhere, right? Well, not really - I use a few routes I know, and drive most other places. The main obstacle, I think, is just not knowing what bus to take when. It's easier to drive. But that's changing...

Matt Hurst has a nice run-down of mapping systems that give information on public transit (or ways to walk instead of drive). Google transit also has a great system for Pittsburgh (and a handful of other cities). I think all that's really needed to make public transit more widely used is some tools like this, development of the BusML standard for route information, free municipal wifi and something to access it with that fits in my pocket.