Never go to a gas station again. We're not talking about transit—we're talking about an app that sends people to your car to fill it up with gas with no service charge.
Jennifer Van Grove lets a bit of editorializing do the talking in reporting on the latest app to hit the streets in an effort to make driving easier:
"Even in an era when no errand is too small to outsource to a smartphone application, start-up Purple, which dispatches a stranger to fill up your gas tank, might smack as on-demand capitalism gone too far."
Purple works from an iPhone or Android app to request a "courier" to come to your car and add 10 or 15 gallons of gas to your tank via portable gas tanks. Van Grove adds:
"Your credit card is billed the going rate for gas, as advertised in the application, with rates comparable to what you might find at stations in your neighborhood. A service charge for the longer, three-hour delivery window is being waived for the time being. Your only task is to make sure your gas tank is accessible to Purple's people."
It will shock few people, perhaps, that the app is based in Los Angeles, recently expanding operations to San Diego. The article includes more detail on the market for the app, which is also summed up by this sound bite from Los Angeles resident Lania Bettin: "I live across the street from a gas station…but I don't always have time to make the stop."
FULL STORY: Start-up app Purple fills up gas tanks for time-crunched customers
Oregon Passes Exemption to Urban Growth Boundary
Cities have a one-time chance to acquire new land for development in a bid to increase housing supply and affordability.
Where Urban Design Is Headed in 2024
A forecast of likely trends in urban design and architecture.
Savannah: A City of Planning Contrasts
From a human-scales, plaza-anchored grid to suburban sprawl, the oldest planned city in the United States has seen wildly different development patterns.
Washington Tribes Receive Resilience Funding
The 28 grants support projects including relocation efforts as coastal communities face the growing impacts of climate change.
Adaptive Reuse Bills Introduced in California Assembly
The legislation would expand eligibility for economic incentives and let cities loosen regulations to allow for more building conversions.
LA's Top Parks, Ranked
TimeOut just released its list of the top 26 parks in the L.A. area, which is home to some of the best green spaces around.
City of Rochester
Boston Harbor Now
City of Bellevue
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact Transit + Community
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
City of Birmingham, Alabama
City of Laramie, Wyoming
Colorado Department of Local Affairs
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.