When The Recent Past Fails To Teach

[peristaltor]

A few years ago, a friend at work had a problem while driving. He heard a noise, probably from the front end of his vehicle. Since he was driving a 60-foot articulated passenger coach packed to the gills with commuters, this could have been a real problem. It was. Though he didn't notice anything at first, when he made a simple lane change he

Comments

[nicoli_dominn]

Great post, as usual. Reminds me of this article I read today: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/10/opinion/sunday/is-it-ok-to-kill-cyclists.html . Also, my ensuing rant about the lack of biker and pedestrian safety where I live as a result of not having adequate bike lanes or sidewalks, or any, for that matter. The article focuses more on how there have apparently been very few criminal charges against drivers who several injure or kill bicycle riders. I think that in addition to people assuming that the driving trends since 2005 are a mere hiccup, there is a sense of entitlement a lot of drivers and people in general have. For so long, they were used to not sharing major roadways with either pedestrians or cyclists, or even people who ride scooters in the same lanes, and now local governments are going and taking their driving space away from them. I think - and this is just my perception - that being able to drive one's own

[peristaltor]

You aren't off-base at all.

I think - and this is just my perception - that being able to drive one's own car and feel the freedom of owning a fast-moving vehicle that seriously frees up your schedule for other (more important?) things is one of the many American Dream ideas that have been sold to us since the boom of the automotive industry.

Nailed it! Actually, some thinkers have gone even further:

The wonderful thing about the American middle class concept is its malleability, because it is almost entirely symbolic. You could be middle class, own an ancestral mansion in an old brick and fieldstone suburb, drive a Mercedes and send your children to an Ivy League school. Or you could be middle class, live in a dolled-up trailer home, drive a souped-up pickup truck, and send your children to a community college that teaches them how to milk hogs. The least common denominator is that you have to drive a motor vehicle, otherwise you can no longer perform this charade

[nicoli_dominn]

Hah, I was too cowardly to go there, but it's where my mind was headed. I see a lot of the behavior quoted in that passage. In a rural area, or in a city like mine that suffers from urban sprawl, poor design and even poorer public transit, I can see why it is easy for people to say they "need" a car. And some really do, due to other circumstances like where they live, whether they have kids and whether they have to take those kids to day care or school or other activities, or whether they care for a homebound adult. I think that most people, though, could make the switch to public transit and/or walking or cycling, depending on where they live. Like if you live in Malden and work in Boston, there's no reason to get a car. You'd just be adding to the horrible I-93 traffic and driving yourself batshit, when your commute via the T would take probably an equal or lesser amount of time and cost you far less in gas, parking and vehicular maintenance. If you live in Manhattan or one of the surrounding boroughs, even on mainland, it's just

[peristaltor]

Keep your fingers crossed about Seattle. I live here. Heck, I drive transit here. Since the legislature didn't provide stable transit funding, Metro is going to cut service 17% pretty soon. That shouldn't affect too much (they've been streamlining service now for a few years, meaning it's still pretty decent), but who knows what they'll cut to make a political statement.

Every time they make such announcements, people go insane and demand a return to former service, so we'll see what happens this time. Who knows? This time, they might actually do it, which would be the first time since Eyeman's 695 debacle in '99.