My father used to tell stories about growing up in the 1930s.

His family had the only radio on the block and the front porch on a summer night was a gathering place for neighbors of all ages.

One of the stories involved my grandfather listening to — and one of the kids translating — a weekly broadcast of “Flash Gordon,” a show based on a comic strip and their adventures in space travel.

My granddad used to laugh, not quite buying into the idea of battling alien opponents, but agreeing that space travel was possible, “maybe someday.”

After all, when he was a child, even radio didn’t exist.

Fast forward to the early 1960s.

There’s a new cartoon show about the future on a black-and-white Philco — something my grandfather didn’t live to see. I’m watching with my dad.

“The Jetsons” followed the lives of a space-age family and their futuristic conveniences — robot maids, instant food and flying cars.

Dad, a self-taught motor head, didn’t buy into flying cars. But the concept of space travel his own father reluctantly espoused was already here.

The idea of traveling in a flying bubble seemed far-fetched to my father.

“Maybe, someday” he’d say.

Well, someday is here and Pennsylvania’s Senate is considering the “Jetsons Act” that would amend the state’s vehicle laws to accommodate what it calls “roadable aircraft” while revising inspection, registration and licensing rules across the board.

Senate Bill 1077, sponsored by Sen. Marty Flynn, D-22, Dauphin County, and cosponsored by regional senators Lisa Boscola, D-18 and Nick Miller, D-14 is being considered by the Senate Transportation Committee.

Similar laws are knocking on the hangar doors in New Hampshire, Minnesota and a few other states.

The core idea behind flying cars is simple. Someone would drive from their garage to a nearby airfield, transform the vehicle into an aircraft, fly to a destination then convert back to road mode for the last stretch.

Already, companies have prototypes that can fly several hundred miles on a tank of unleaded auto fuel, showing that it’s a sort of evolution of small aviation and high-efficiency cars.

On the road, they’d be treated as ordinary motor vehicles and as aircraft in the air. On Main Street, they’d be ruled by the traffic code and then follow Federal Aviation Administration rules once airborne.

And they could be a practical solution to linking small towns and regional hubs that aren’t served by airlines or rail.

Imagine how Jake Arner Memorial or the Zerbey airport in Schuylkill County might improve their status as regional transportation assets, possibly a magnet for restaurants, fueling stations and other small businesses.

For people who now spend countless hours on highways, a vehicle that can cruise over congestion and rough terrain isn’t a toy. Instead, it’s a valuable tool to increase productivity and access.

Laws like these can strengthen industry, too. When they’re in place, they can help lure manufacturing, engineering and other spin-off jobs. As they’re adopted, they’ll eventually come together to make it easier for flying cars — setting standards for building performance, promoting safety and limiting bureaucracy.

Though all the details aren’t worked out, regulating roadable aircraft would involve strict inspections — maybe even getting a certified aircraft mechanic to handle vehicle repairs.

A new law would also standardize things like vehicle registration and even require a tail number like other aircraft.

Moving forward, the state legislature should take a hard look at establishing a roadable aircraft law, and work to coordinate them with other states. Members need to consider a shared proposal that manufacturers and regulators support.

Many of us probably won’t see the day flying cars reach the status they had in “The Jetsons.”

They won’t replace traditional cars, buses or trains anytime soon.

But starting early would give Pennsylvania an advantage that helps rural areas, revitalize underused airports, and keep the nation ahead of innovations in aviation.

Like the radio, space travel and “The Jetsons,” the concept of roadable aircraft is ready to take off.

Forward thinking legislators willing to draft bold laws is all that’s needed.

Maybe someday.

ED SOCHA | tneditor@tnonline.com