The Tampa Bay area has seen tremendous improvements in air quality over the past 25 years thanks to the efforts and programs at the federal, state and local levels. We still have, however, much to do to improve the levels of ozone in our air. In 1998, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) established a tougher federal standard for measuring ozone that averages ozone readings over an eight-hour period. The standard was made more stringent because the EPA review of recent health studies showed that long exposure to low concentrations of ozone were just as harmful as short exposures to high concentrations. It is likely that the Tampa Bay area will not be able to meet this new standard. So, what is ozone? Ozone is a highly reactive, poisonous form of oxygen. It is one of the six criteria pollutants that the EPA has identified under the national Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). Ozone is formed through a photochemical reaction when volatile organic compounds (VOC) combine with nitrogen oxides (NOx) in the presence of direct sunlight. The largest source of VOCs are motor vehicles. Visit the Environmental Protection Agency's web site to access state and local air quality forecasts, current ozone maps and information about ozone and other air quality issues. Most road rage incidents start off as a simple encounter between two drivers. An initial encounter can soon escalate and lead to more aggressive and dangerous behavior. Many people have termed this type of behavior "road rage." There is a disagreement among professionals on whether there has really been an increase in road rage. According to Michael Fumento in an August 98 Atlantic Monthly article entitled "Road Rage Versus Reality," there is no scientific evidence of more aggressive driving on our nation's highways, and that road rage is a media invention. Nonetheless, we all have our own personal experiences with aggressive drivers, and at BACS we feel strongly that those who take transit or rideshare with others are much less likely to get angry at bad behavior when there are others present. Every year the American Automobile Association calculates American's driving costs including ownership and operating costs. The 2000 figures show that the average per mile cost of driving is $.491. This was based on $1.34/gallon, driving 15,000 miles per year. This ever-increasing cost is just one more reason why the public is turning to transit and other commute alternatives.