m0smithslash's Journal: An alternative to the legacy parkway

As quoted in a Utah Department Of Transportation press release, the cost of the Legacy
Parkway was originally bid at $475,500,000.00. Of course, with the
delays, court battles, and such, it is going to cost a lot more than
that. However, lets just start with that number for argument's sake.
In other words, that is the amount of money the state is using to make
sure that those people who live in northern Davis county and need to get
to the west side of the Salt Lake valley can do so without being unduly
delayed by the huge mass of people heading downtown. Current estimates
are there are about 130 such people.

When I was in San Francisco, I noticed that for $30.00 you could get a
helicopter sight seeing tour lasting 30 minutes. It wouldn't take 30
minutes for a helicopter to take people to work in the morning and back
home again in the evening. Keep in mind that the helicopter operators
are making money at this rate.

Given the amount of money (half a billion dollars is the optimistic
estimate) and the cost of a helicopter ride ($30.00 for half an hour)
and the low number of people that would use the new highway (130), I
propose an alternative: heliopooling.

Its really simple. You arrange with 4 or 5 people for a place for the
helicopter to land, a heliopark. It picks you up and wisks you off to
work. Then in the evening, it picks you up at work and drops you off at
the "heliopool parking lot " or heliopark. A single helicopter could
take many groups of people from Davis county to Salt Lake county each
morning and back again each evening. Just as wireless networking is
better that wired, this is roadless commuting.

Who is going to pay for it? The state of course. They are already
bound and determined to spend $450,000,000 on getting those people to
work. If they put that money in escrow at 10% interest, they would have
money to fly every one to and from work on the interest alone. Plus,
there is no need to have all the lawsuits, environmental impact studies,
and other costly things. That money could be added to the escrow to
allow for more people in the futute.

Also, there would be ways to reduce costs. With a long term contract, a
heliopooling company could make money on less than $30.00 a day per
person. Maybe the military could use the big helicopters to haul a bus
load of people and call it practice rescueing civilians in an urban
area. Then the military could use the $30.00 to buy supplament the
military budget, reducing the need for federal tax increases.

Additionaly, this would spawn new companies that hire people and improve
the economy. There will be companies that sell golden parachutes for
executives to wear. Imagine small snack shops and java huts at the
heliopark for people as they are waiting for the helicopter. Designer
earmuffs and stylish straps for the ladies skirts so they don't blow up
over their heads as the board and depart the helicopter. A whole new
service industry will be created.

There would be less pollution. Buses are uncool and riding one makes
one uncool. Carpools are only slightly less uncool than buses.
Helicopters are cool and riding one to work would be something to brag
about. So, since coolness is what really motiviates people, the
helicopters would be popular enough to cause people to leave their
gas-guzzling, air-polluting cars at home. Since the helicopter only
take 10 minutes or so to get to work, it will be polluting less than a
car travelling 40 minutes or more. Plus, it will be taking several
people who would each have driven their car, additionally saving on gas
and creating less pollution.

Just as its easier to add a computer to a wireless network, so it would
be easiear to add people to the roadless commuter pool than to build and
maintain more roads for them. Because its a money making business for
the helicopter opertaors, they would be willing to transport more
people. Because it will greatly reduce the amount spent on roads each
year, that tax money that would have been spent creating and maintaining
roads could now be spent doing the real work: transporting people.

This is my proposal and I think it should be given all due
consideration. It will reduce pollution, save money, create jobs and
add to the overall coolness of Utah, a pretty great state.