While I was on my travels in the USA I came across some very interesting technological advances that has not yet reached the shores of South Africa.
The first noticeable difference is the transport system.
They have buses running continuously on specified routes from key points in the city.
The routes varies from the airport to key tourist attractions, for example from Washington Airport to the Smithsonian Air and Space museum.
You pay an x amount for a day-pass, but always try to give the correct amount, as you will not receive change.
Next up , the train system.
The Metro Train system runs from early hours in the morning to late in the evening.
They have five active lines running, Blue line , Yellow line , Orange Line , Green Line and the Red Line.
These trains run from underground subway stations, over bridges and even in between traffic on the highway.
You can jump on and off these trains at any time to get to your desired destination.
The Metro bus service which I took while I was in Washington, also stops at these subway stations which are very convenient when trying to get to your required destination on time.
Internet and Wi-Fi (short for "wireless fidelity”)
Whilst trekking through the US and A, I stopped at various airports, hotels and even motels.
The airports in the USA don’t offer free Wi-Fi as far as I know.
While I was in Doha International Airport , Qatar, they offered free Wi-Fi service.
The Greyhound Bus station in Milwaukee USA offered free Wi-Fi service as well.
I stopped over at a 4 star hotel that didn’t offer free Wi-Fi.
The Motel in Washington offered free Wi-Fi to all their customers who stayed overnight.
The ADSL speed in the USA is phenomenal compared to our measly 45 kb per second on downloads, we get on a good day.
The USA Verizon internet is now offering FiOS internet.
FiOS stands for "Fiber Optic Service." FiOS is a data communications service provided by Verizon that uses fiber optic cables to transfer data. FiOS is called a "Fiber to the Premises," or FTTP service, since it brings fiber optic data transmission to residential homes as well as businesses. Since fiber optic technology sends data via pulses of light, it is the fastest method of transferring data.
In conclusion I think South Africa is far behind times when it comes to the Transport and IT infrastructure compared to the other First World countries.
We are improving our system as we are working on the Gauteng Train system which should be implemented for the 2010 World Cup.
Future? Only time will tell.