You might recall that I am not a big fan of urban sprawl. As I grew up in these United States, I came to the realization that most of our cities are not designed for people, but rather the mode of transportation most preferred and promoted (cars). The general idea during the 20th century was that more roads, more cars, and more miles driven, meant “progress”! My hope is that 21st century citizens have come to the realization that this is no longer the case (if it ever was). Lives spent in traffic jams and pollution are lives wasted.
Thus it is uplifting to see a very slowly developing trend away from “the car” as a barometer of progress. I have tracked this trend with a few past blog posts which you might want to review. “Peak Car Has Arrived“, “Divorcing the Car“, “‘Peak Car’ Has Passed“.
Traffic Clogs American Roadways
The theme of more cars and more sprawl as progress has not completely left the zeitgeist, however. Just this past weekend, I came across an article stating that the “U.S. motorist is unwell…” The reason? Because the miles-driven metric has suffered a significant decline even though gas prices have not increased very much.
I would cast the trend in a different light. My headline would be “U.S. motorist is getting smarter”. Maybe the influence of younger generations is finally taking hold. Maybe the information age is finally replacing the industrial age. Maybe more people are giving up the hassle and high cost of owning a car and spending so much time in traffic jams.
I guy can dream, right?
Related media about the general theme.
James Kunstler warns that it is an ill-advised pursuit to build more strip malls (and call it progress).
Spain is experimenting with creating limited car travel zones within their cities called “super-blocks”.
Meteorologist Justin Loew
