Sneak Peek: Wed March 27, 2024
Added 2024-03-27 13:42:26 +0000 UTCDid you need another video about all the harms cars cause to society? Of course you did. The image above is from a paper that counts all the ways, and I've adapted it for today's video, with my usual gratuitous commentary.
(Note to Nebula subscribers: the early release of NEXT week's YouTube video probably won't come until Friday, due to a bunch of personal stuff I had going on this week. I do aim to have Nebula versions up a full week early on an ongoing basis, but occasionally I need some flexibility!)
I'm not going to spoil anything about today's YouTube release, but making this video kind of made me realize that the act of running this channel has radicalized me even further than what I already was when I started (and I had to have been kind of crazy to have even started this channel in the first place!). OK, just one small example: I don't drive anywhere, but just about anywhere I walk/bike/bus to run errands, etc., there's "free" off-street parking, or at least free on-street parking that I don't use at all. But of course the cost of parking gets rolled into the prices I pay (in the case of off-street), or, in the case of on-street, it has a big opportunity cost in that it could be used for wider sidewalks, bike infra, seating, amenities, etc., that would noticeably improve my safety and quality of life. It's not as if I walk/bike around Albuquerque being constantly enraged about this stuff (that would be unfun), but I do find I increasingly carry a kind of massive sense of injustice like a chip on my shoulder. And sure, that chip on my shoulder is a big motivating force in what I do, but it definitely feels like an unwanted burden sometimes.
Today's question: do you ever feel weighed down by how unjust our built environment is and how intractable the problems sometimes seem? (Or is it just me?) I'm all about being glass half-full and trying to be part of the solution, but it's not always easy! If you're someone who's prone to dwelling on this stuff, what are your coping strategies? Asking for a friend.
Comments
Luxembourg has a free public transportation, and it is a subject in many places in Europe. Free public transportation does not discourage people from driving, once you consider the sunken costs of a car, public transportation costs are not that big. You could subsidise public transportation card for the poorest instead. Besides gas tax, you can also tax curb-site parking (you need a paying card in many Swiss cities for instance) or make the acquisition of the card conditional to owning/having access to a parking slot (Japan). The core problem for me is that public transportation does not work below a certain density and so you need to change the underlying lifestyle (and mythos), suburbia is the problem…
Matthias “Thias” Wiesmann
2024-03-28 07:21:57 +0000 UTCThank you for this fantastic video. My neck of the woods made it into one of the stock footages! Sadly, it's the Palisades Center Mall in West Nyack, NY (the aerial shot of the Home Depot with the sea of parking). I started an advocacy group in my area thanks to you and other inspiring urbanist creators!
Jon Ross
2024-03-28 01:20:19 +0000 UTCThank you for this topic! Realizing that they (and I) are apart of the problem is earth shattering. Burning question! (off topic-sorry!) it dawned on me the other day that if we all had to pay for (free!) public transportation and good non car infrastructure (gas tax?) wouldn’t that be the way to go? People could choose to drive but at a realistic cost.
Dari L Smith
2024-03-28 01:08:26 +0000 UTC
