American like to talk about progress and technological innovation, but they (we) get pretty quiet when it comes to our cars. Most American cities are increasingly nightmarish urban centers, choked with car traffic and foul with all the worst impacts of a society that has chosen the freedom of individual, automotive transportation and eschewed public transport in most of its forms. Everybody wants "reform" but few are actually doing it with much success.

Enter Denver, Colorado. From CityLab:

But in a state that recently voted to legalize the retail sale of marijuana, change is clearly in the wind. Ten years ago, Denver's new mayor (and current Colorado governor) John Hickenlooper began to ramp up a campaign to convince voters to approve an ambitious expansion of the region's embryonic light rail network. A similar plan - fuzzy on such key details as routes and cost - had been defeated in a 1997 referendum. In 2004, the region's voters approved $4.7 billion of new debt for the FasTracks program. The plan, to add 121 miles of new commuter and light-rail tracks to the region, 18 miles of bus rapid transit lanes, 57 new rapid transit stations, and 21,000 park-and-ride spots, was approved 58-to-42, precisely reversing the results of the '97 referendum. (The pricetag has since risen to $7.8 billion.)

By building a multi-poled system, RTD is tailoring transit to the contemporary metropolis. Crucially, by building it in conjunction with high-density transit-oriented development, the agency is also scheming to change the very nature of the American metropolis. That's why, when it comes to the future of transportation on this continent, Denver may be the city to watch.

Congrats to the Raspberry Pi, the little device that just keeps going and going. They've sold 3 million units so far and the demand shows no sign of slowing. And the creative new uses for it keep on coming:

• DIYer studio CowFish created an awesome little gadget that hacks his car's OBD ("on board diagnostics") data port to read real-time automotive data and display it on a screen while driving: turns out it was a pretty simple hack.
• Andy Felong mixed a Raspberry Pi, an Ipad, and a vintage 1942 radio to create ... an improved 1942 radio.
• Better still, Lon Steidman has used a Raspberry Pi to create and run a telnet Bulletin Board System (BBS) on (get this!) an Apple IIe!

Have a look at Her Majesty the Queen of England in that first link: she's gazing thoughtfully at a couple of Raspbis and some assorted hardware. What gadget do you think she'd build?
[Ed note: The steady stream of cool projects being built around Raspberry Pis is fascinating and captivating. Wish this damned day job didn't keep getting in my way of having all this fun.]