Tags
book group, car pooling, cars are a public health problem, electric bikes, electric cars, transportation
Happy Summer Solstice!
I am a happy girl on vacation this week and so far it has been marvelous. But with my next book group meeting coming up tomorrow night, I thought today I would finally manage to catch up on the last book group meeting.
The chapter we read in Making Home by Sharon Astyk was about transportation. I was very excited about this because I thought it would be all about buses and trains and bicycles. But of course it was more than that.
Astyk had an interesting approach. Instead of saying cars are bad because they are expensive and pollute the environment like I expected, she talked about how we as a society have normalized a thing that is incredibly dangerous. As she says, “We worry more about BPA in our cans than we do about the cars that are the leading cause of death in children.” While we are all focused on emissions, we fail to recognize the true cost of cars and what it means to be a car society where many seem to believe it is a right to own and drive a car.
Worldwide we can attribute 1.2 million deaths a year and forty million injuries significant enough for a hospital or doctor visit to auto related accidents. In the United States alone, forty million people die because of cars every year. And the disability claims because of loss of work or permanent injury reach into the hundreds of millions of dollars. Particulate emissions and pollution from road traffic also cause asthma, lung disease and other illnesses. And studies done in populations where car ownership is not high, show that owning a car can be correlated to a high risk of obesity. Cars are one of the biggest public health problems and yet we refuse to even notice.
We think most of our car trips are necessary, that we have to own a car because work, groceries, kids. But studies show that more than 25% of all car trips are discretionary. Participants from fourteen countries who took part in Riot for Austerity, a program that encourages people to reduce their use of resources, found that they were able to reduce their car usage 25-50 percent without making any major structural changes to their lives.
Giving up the car habit is hard, there is no doubt about it. In some places it is harder than others because of a lack of public transportation and other infrastructure. But, it is not impossible. Sharing a car between friends or neighbors, joining a formal car sharing program if you are lucky enough to have one available, carpooling to work, planning your car trips more carefully, only using your car when you actually have to (do you really need to drive to the library four blocks away?), planning activities that don’t require you driving to get there — there are all sorts of ways to be creative and mindful.
The book group fell on a beautiful weather day and almost everyone who showed up either biked or walked. We talked a lot about bikes, of course. One of the group members has an e-bike and she explained how it worked and what a difference it has made for her. She is now more likely to take her bike to get groceries or run errands because the electric assist makes it easier to carry heavy loads. Of course, the bike has to be charged so it is not carbon neutral unless you happen to charge it with a solar panel.
We also talked about carpooling and how we think it just isn’t possible because I need to stop at the grocery store or do this or that after work. But a group member told us about a carpool she belonged to once. The four of them got along so well that they would car pool to do their grocery shopping and other errands. Another person said he did a carpool where his workplace matched him up with someone who lived near him. The woman turned out to be a far-right talk radio sort of person. He thought it was going to go badly, but because they were stuck in a car together they ended up really talking. He learned a lot and she did too.
Mention was also made of electric cars. You know they are being touted as the cars of the future because no emissions. But this is not true. You have to plug the car in to charge the battery and the electricity you are using is coming from coal burning power plants. So electric cars are not emission-free, the emissions are just pushed elsewhere, out of sight, so you can feel good about driving a car.
Of course, I think more people should ride a bike. I know there are some people with physical limitations who are unable to and that’s cool, you get to be extra creative in finding ways to not use a car and if you have suggestions I would love to hear them. If you have no physical limitations, get that dusty bike out of the garage, put some air in the tires and go! What are you waiting for? Cycling can be as cheap or as expensive as you want it to be. You don’t have to wear spandex shorts and you don’t need a $5,000 carbon bike. All you need is a comfortable bike that fits you, a good helmet (do not skimp on the helmet!), some lights and a backpack (but if you plan on carrying lots of stuff, get a rack and or baskets/panniers your back will thank you for it).
If you want any advice or encouragement, I’d be glad to offer some. Or, find a local bike shop, not one that caters to the hipster or racing crowds, but one that is interested in all kinds of cycling and doesn’t make you feel stupid asking newbie questions. If you don’t find one on your first try, don’t give up! I promise they are out there and finding the shop is worth the time and effort.
Whatever you do though, if you own a car, try to drive it less often and with more people than you in it. Limit the public health threat as much as you can.
In early July I’m entering a 4-6 week period in which I cannot drive a car (after getting my right knee replaced). I expect it will be eye-opening.
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I’ve often thought many of these same things. We worry about weapons of mass destruction but accept the deaths of millions of people in car accidents. Many if those are not really accidents but are caused by incompetent drivers. Every idiot with no reflexes or driving skills can get a driver’s license.
I usually drive our car once a week to get groceries. I try to plan all my non-walking-distance errands for that day. That’s also because I hate wasting my time with multiple trips. I hate the mass environmental destruction caused by building new roads. Ugh!
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It’s really appalling how many people are killed each year by cars. I had no idea the number was that large. That’s a good angle to take on reducing car use. I wish so badly we had invested in trains in the 1950’s instead of the highway system in America.
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AMEN to all of that! Cars are lethal weapons. It is scary how casual people are about them, they are also immensely bad for people health and character wise, I think. I do feel like they foster a selfish attitude to road use (I am often on the receiving end of it) and to life in general. A sense of entitlement due to isolation.
I’m interested that you don’t seem to have talked much about public transport. Is that because the US is so car-centric? I think what’s interesting is that the Netherlands – always held up as bike nirvana – actually had a massive problem with cars and road deaths in the 1970s but changed that all around thanks to a grass-roots movement that inspired government policy.
To me a bike is a still a wonder of engineering that far outclasses a car.
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Happy Summer Solstice!
It is astonishing just how much our society is wedded to the automobile. As you point out in your post, we so rarely think about the costs.
I try to walk whenever I can. Our suburbs are so automobile – centric. This is shame and needs to change.
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Sounds fascinating. I love it when a familiar argument comes from a different angle than we expect.
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I LOVED this particular chapter! Because I do not own a car and I always get looks from folks who will say “Why don’t you get a car? It will provide mobility and yada yada yada!” I think my city has enough cars and pollution without me adding the the party! I do a lot of things but with a little planning, all of it can be managed without a car! From Grocery shopping to late night parties, I have been doing it all since I was 17 and that is 18 years ago without a personal vehicle. Its completely doable, we just need to start!
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Another aspect of individual car ownership is the amount of space they take up. I look forward to the introduction of driverless cars – this will free up massive amounts of land – it is estimated that on average 95% of cars are parked at any one time.
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Happy solstice to you! We are moving to the suburbs, and now we are thinking of getting a car, because it’s getting difficult to do without outside of the city. But I’m not a good driver (no experience) and I don’t cycle well either (it’s hilly). I am thinking about getting a scooter first.
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Your post has got me thinking about how I could probably ride my bike to work on non-work out days… You’re right: just need to get the dust off my bike in the garage and pump the tires and I’ll be all set! A good goal for this weekend, perhaps…. Thanks! 🙂
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I forgot to wish you a Happy Solstice!
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Happy Solstice! Great post. I wish I could depend less on a car but here in Texas it’s not so easy. I thought about taking a bus to work but when I worked out the route it would take me 2 hours to get there and 2 hours back home. Yikes, there goes half of my day.
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Happy Solstice! I don’t drive and have always walked everywhere as did my kids when they were wee. . I have seen parents drive through a school playground full of kids to deposit their child right at the school front door, regardless of the hundreds of children in the playground! Now that I live in a more remote area it’s a 40 minute round walk for the Guardian every morning. It keeps us fit!
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Stefanie,
You should be glad to hear the latest business news that car dealerships would likely be gone in a decade! All due to shared transport, and even if we have cars, they will likely be electric. Anyway, I still like mine… where else would I listen to my audiobooks? 😦
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Living in New York City was eye-opening as far as the necessity of car use. Ever since moving back to Louisiana, I’ve been using my car far less than I did before living in New York. You just realize when you have to do it how easy it is to walk to a lot of places, and set up your life so that walking is possible — but of course, like most things, this is all a function of privilege, being able to live in a place with public transportation or bike lanes or with grocery stores and other vital things in walking distance.
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I wish more city planning here was about making it a more walkable city. Did you know (I bet you did) that Millennials actually prefer not having a car? At least that is what I heard and so city planners are sitting up and taking notice–I hope that is the case. I really should get a bike, but knowing how awful people drive when it comes to Not paying attention to pedestrians makes me worry about what it would be like to be on a bike. You already know I prefer not having a car and for me it works–I don’t miss it it all. I can go weeks without getting into a car even–people probably think I am very odd, but I have no plans on changing now.
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The road toll aspect of cars is an issue that bothers Mr Gums a lot – or that fact that hoo-ha is made about other deaths that are far less preponderant but what about road deaths. I argue that road deaths is the subject of ongoing work here – in all sorts of ways from improving car safety, improving road signage, tinkering with licensing of new drivers, improving roads themselves, etc etc. I think we do care a lot.
Mr Gums is very happy to use public transport when he can (though our city – a bit like LA – was built for the car so public transport is poor). We are though finally getting a light rail despite a huge number of naysayers and an election fought on it that we thought our side was going to lose. It’s going to cost a lot, and it may not be “simply” economical initially but we have to reduce our dependence on cars. Our city is also a bike city, has always been known as that, and has a pretty good bike path network. However, bikes and me are just not good pals. I never grew up with them and just can’t seem – despite trying a couple of occasions – to build up the enthusiasm. My brother, though, is another thing. He rides a bike – or walks – a lot. Their car is primarily for country trips to go camping, not for city commuting.
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Great Post 👍 your post got me thinking that today we are depend on cars and even we don’t want to share it with others. If a human really want to think about this world then there are lots of ways to save these death or this world. Nowadays, you’ll find the business offering ride share, car sharing and many other option. Thus they can save money and contribute to save this earth a bit. Rest is upto them, you can’t change anyone’s thinking, only they can.
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Well said. Sharing is caring. Sharing can save this world
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