In many of American cities, it is just more viable to take public transport with gridlock traffic consuming the cities. But even if you don’t live in the city, public transportation may be a great choice, not only to help the environment but to also save yourself a considerable amount of money. Not only would we not have to pay for the the car itself, the gas that powers our cars to get us from home to work and back again, but you may also avoid tolls and car maintenance bills. We can also avoid the monthly car insurance bill as well and when the average cost of a car insurance premium in 2009 was $1,800, that breaks down to be $150 a month. That is $150 we can save or even use to buy something more important.

The month of October is dedicated to breast cancer awareness and in a noble effort supported by breast men (and the women who tolerate them) the world over, Ford has thrown themselves behind the cause. Last night and again this evening, Ford’s Michigan headquarters will be illuminated at sunset by a dazzling pink display intended to demonstrate their support for breast cancer survivors and activists. More than just an empty gesture, Ford’s temporary light show marks the 15th year anniversary of Ford’s support of the Susan G. Komen foundation and the donation of over $100 million to the cause.

In addition to October’s festivities, Ford also provides year-round funding for their in-house support squad appropriately dubbed the “Ford Warriors in Pink.” The warriors, which are partly responsible for Ford’s decision to illuminate their Dearborn headquarters tonight, are an organization dedicated to further awareness and education beyond one month out of the year. “With the Ford Warriors in Pink program, we continually strive to encourage women and men everywhere to join the fight and be a part of the cure for breast cancer,” explained Ford President of the Americas, Mark Fields. “For 15 years, Ford has been committed to fighting breast cancer, standing up for the cause no matter the month. Tonight’s ceremony is designed to show our support for all those affected by the disease.”

Who knew a lifestyle that necessitates surviving almost exclusively on a diet of Ramen noodles and Natural Ice could prove so beneficial to the environment? According to Zipcar, their rideshare programs that currently dot an estimated 140 university campuses across the U.S. and Great Britian are succeeding in astronomically reducing emissions, and all thanks to the overwhelming response from college kids too broke to spring for their own set of wheels. By the numbers, Zipcar estimates they’ve cut CO2 emissions by 56 million pounds annually, which is roughly equivalent to the amount of CO2 that would be emitted by 4,800 dilapidated Honda Accords with Greek and/or obscure band bumper stickers affixed atop the more noticeable dents.

In addition to the significant environmental benefits, Zipcar’s service has also done wonders for solving many of the congestion problems plaguing certain campuses and university officials laud the program with praise. “I cannot say enough about our partnership with Zipcar; their commitment to innovation, marketing, and customer service has allowed us to create the type of brand awareness and customer loyalty that students identify with and respect,” said Tony Mazza, Director of Transportation for the University of Southern California (USC). “With over 20 cars and approximately 1000 members on campus – we are dedicated to continue growing our car-sharing program until our parking demand and environmental goals have been realized.”

Ever wondered how fast a hearse, with a casket and body inside, would run the quarter mile? If you were watching Jerome Miller’s funeral procession, you’d have the answer. Miller was an avid, possibly fanatic drag racing fan from Kenosha, Wisconsin, who came up street dragging and ended up running an AMC dragger until around 1993, when his eyesight wouldn’t allow it anymore.

It’s been a rough week for Toyota. The giant automaker has been slapped with a restraining order by a Texas judge to prevent the company from potentially destroying any information about an alleged spate of rollover accidents. The plaintiff in the case, Dimitrios Biller, alleges that there is “a Watergate style cover-up underway at Toyota to undermine the American legal system.” Biller claims that Toyota has been conspiring to conceal evidence about the relative safety of their vehicles, and might destroy the documentation. If the allegations are true, Toyota might be in the midst of another safety-related fiasco, especially in light of the “floormat inferno” scandal raging at the moment. Is Toyota engaged in nefarious doings, or is it just so large now that it’s an easy target for frivolous suits? More and a press release from Biller’s attorney below.

It was a dark and foggy night … when a 24 year old San Franciscan missed a turn on the notoriously twisty California Highway 1 and flew off the road at a place appropriately called Devil’s Slide. The Mazda sedan plunged 150 feet, but landed squarely on its wheels, and the man was unharmed save a bump on the head. The reason, said CHP Sergeant Trent Cross, is that “[h]e did what he was supposed to do, he wore his seat belt … If he hadn’t been wearing it, there is no doubt it would have been fatal.” He was able to call 911, and despite having to wait 45 minutes while search crews peered through the thick fog, he was hauled up from the bottom and is doing fine. So, just for the record, if you’re driving a twisty cliff road at 4 am in the thick fog, please be wear a seat belt just in case you happen to careen off the edge.

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You order a bedroom set for your son, but when it arrives, the mattress you thought would be included in the deal is missing. What do you do? If you’re Robert Caton of Hampshire, UK, you guzzle two bottles of cheap whiskey, hop in your ‘83 Rolls-Royce, and plow through the store in a drunken, poorly conceived rampage. Oh, and not on the first try either – he made two unsuccessful attempts to raze the store before finally succeeding in careening the Roller through the window, causing roughly $100,000 worth of damage.

There’s been a lot of speculation about the effectiveness Cash for Clunkers (C4C) in light of the massively dysfunctional dealer reimbursement scheme, and it seems like that batch of screw-ups threw the entire program into question. Up until this point, the major unanswered question was, did Cash for Clunkers draw “new” buyers, or did it simply help folks who already were going to buy a car? A new survey suggests that the so-called “incremental buyers” who were not thinking about buying a new car before C4C was introduced went out and bought new cars through the program. And not just a couple of them – as many as 30%. Click through for more on what this means.

All across South Jersey, police are targeting motorists who fail to yield to pedestrians in the crosswalk. To date, over 700 tickets have been issued to drivers in Cherry Hill, Collingswood, Pennsauken, and Burlington City, and vehicles have begun slowing down to as little as 50 mph before blowing by the foot traffic. Eventually police aim to have them coming to a complete stop, but that plan seems optimistic at best.

If you hate speed trap cameras, you have a friend in Dave Vontesmar of Phoenix. He thinks they’re a blatant money grab, and he’s probably right. This flight attendant who commutes more than 30 miles per day was recently served by state officials with notices of 37 different open violations captured on camera. Despite the fact that it’s his car, Vontesmar is claiming he’s not the driver, and he shouldn’t pay for the tickets. You see, what is actually in the driver’s seat in the photos is, depending on the day, either a monkey or a giraffe. That has lead Vontesmar to challenge the tickets, saying that if you compare his driver’s license photo to that of the monkey, it clearly doesn’t match up. And if you can prove you weren’t the driver of the car receiving the speeding violation, you get out of the ticket in Arizona. Is there really just a speed-loving, gorilla-masked wearing lunatic on the loose, who commutes in Vontesmar’s car to Vontesmar’s job every day from his home? Or has Vontesmar hit on some new super-strategy to stick it to the man?