Drive-by observations

As you know, I spend quite a bit of time on the highways of the Pennsylvania (and highway-ish roads of Maryland).  This affords me an opportunity to notice trends about travel – and lots of time to ponder them.  One thing that I’ve been seeing more and more are aerodynamic attachments to tractor trailers.  For instance:

The little flap under the trailer?  There to keep air flowing more smoothly and thereby make the truck more efficient (and less costly for its operator).  These are also taking the form of winglets on the backs of trailers and other coverings for the gaps between the actual truck and its cargo.

All of this got me thinking about the eccentric German inventor, Luigi Colani.  Who knows when ago, I watched a documentary on the future of travel on the Discovery channel and remember being floored by the crazy looking tractor trailer concept that Luigi had come up with:

At the time, I can remember the show’s host joking about how strange it would be to see such an odd looking vehicle on the roadways.  Now, I’m not so sure that kooky Colani wasn’t on to something…

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