BART two!
I don't know how seriously the recommendations by this group are taken, but the SF Planning & Urban Research Association says:
SPUR recommends that we plan and build a new subway line through the South of Market area. It is probable that such a new subway line could be implemented incrementally, starting with the turnback, and would eventually link up with a second Transbay Tube to the East Bay. The new tube should accommodate four tracks in order to include BART and commuter rail.
SPUR believes that either Folsom or Townsend streets would be appropriate for the new alignment, although there are serious pros and cons of each. The new regional subway line should run under at least one of these two corridors.
I think "hell yeah" is the only appropriate response here. Especially since BART's consistent but not-entirely-believable excuse for why there is no late-night service is, "we only have one track, so we have to shut down the whole system to fix anything anywhere."
PG&E beams power from spaaaaaaace
Space Solar Power
PG&E is seeking approval from state regulators for a power purchase agreement with Solaren Corp., a Southern California company that has contracted to deliver 200 megawatts of clean, renewable power over a 15 year period.
Solaren says it plans to generate the power using solar panels in earth orbit, then convert it to radio frequency energy for transmission to a receiving station in Fresno County. From there, the energy will be converted to electricity and fed into PG&E's power grid.
I haven't found anything that explains how the power transfer works, anyone know? Is it an orbital death ray that heats a boiler on the ground, or what?
