NASA's wrong -way duck....
Can't use the shuttle side-mount model as that's what has been causing the foam-shredding issue that killed Columbia. Foam will shred at hypersonic speeds, and some of it will impact wings, so the old paradigm is a non-starter. Better to go inline with the people at the top - that way any foam shed by the tank can't hit whatever they're in.
Actually makes more sense to use a capsule for people and a cargo lifter for cargo since each has specific differences. Trying to do both with the same tool is what cost us 14 astronauts and two shuttles. IOW don't use a table saw to do a screwdrivers job.
For LEO the best and cheapest answer would be to haul people up with SpaceX's Dragon on a Falcon 9, and the first pairing of those is being shipped to LC-40 at the Cape in November for launch either late this year or Q1 2010. Unlike Ares I-X this is a real-deal booster and the Dragon testbed is one of their qualification units, not just a dummy load.
NASA and SpaceX started about the same time. NASA is launching a bottle rocket and SpaceX is launching something more akin to what Ares I-Y is expected to be, but 3-4 years before that flight is scheduled (if indeed that ever happens) and on a much, much smaller dime.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
