"Free your mind, and the rest will follow."
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Responses to the Auto-centric
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What does it sound like walking down the street in . . . |
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There is no intention within this essay to demean users of motor vehicles, but simply to impress upon them that [my research has led me to believe] this single element is responsible for a disproportionate amount of the sociological, economic, psychological, biological, and environmental damage created in the 20th century. Excerpted from the 1994 Cycle America Wine Country Guide |
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--"But
I'm a good driver."--
Psychologically, as human beings we tend to exaggerate the faults of others while glossing over our own. One need simply listen to the morning traffic report to understand the vast damage caused by auto dependence. This website is filled with advice and tips to help those who are willing to put the safety of their neighbors and children first. So enjoy the pictures, text, and links to help you live free. |
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Motor Vehicle Weight and Pedestrian Safety Relative Risk of Pedestrian Fatality Rates per Million Registered Vehicle-Years (MRVY)With Passenger Cars As Baseline for Each Age Group By Striking Vehicle Body Type and Age of Pedestrian 1997-2006 
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| --"But what if you want to go out into the country?"-- Thousands of car drivers take weekend trips out of the city to 'get away from it all.' What do many of them discover? That traffic, horns, parking problems, and noise follow them. This is because while your car may seem perfectly all right, all those other nincompoops out there are preventing you from enjoying your outing. And they of course, feel the same about you."Once we start waking up to the fact that there's plenty of fascination to be had right under our noses, wherever we are becomes a more remarkable place…. What I find most interesting is my excitement about living each day as though I am a foreigner here." The most common reason that people seak to travel outside of the city,
is so that they can escape from the consequences of auto-centricism. Namely
noise
pollution, stress,
smog, traffic,
etc. |
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--"Well I certainly feel safer within a car than I would out on the street unprotected."--
Stopping distance equals the square of velocity; so traveling at 30 mph requires four times more distance to stop compared to 15 mph. Many drivers never think of the consequences of increased speed. The consequences of speeding are serious: About 90% of pedestrians struck at 40 miles per hour will be killed in comparison to about 45% for those struck at 30 miles per hour. The willingness to overlook such dangers has resulted in an environment in which automobile crashes are the highest cause of preventable death in America. Meanwhile a pedestrian or bicyclist weighing less than 200 lbs and traveling
at an average of 10mph has much less inertia resulting in a stopping distance
of only a few feet (not to mention the vastly increased maneuverability).
By making the simple decision to ride a bicycle or walk, you are making the neighborhood safer for you, your neighbors, and most importantly the children living nearby. This is because the more bicyclists and pedestrians there are on the road, the more drivers become attentive to them. Portland, Oregon is a prime example of this My widowed neighbor, Marianne Aarnas, was in good health, except for her eyes. She had age-related macular degeneration, which worsens gradually over the years. Marianne knew she'd eventually have to give up driving. She prepared by eliminating night driving, then by driving only short distances. She stopped serving as a volunteer driver for other seniors.Three years ago Marianne visited the DMV for an eye test. She was sure they'd tell her she could no longer drive; she had difficulty reading the eye chart. But Marianne passed and was issued a license for eight years, with no further questions! Last year her ophthalmologist declared her legally blind. Blind World by Syd Kanitz In addition to the physical dangers created by the automobile, thousands of people (many of them small children) are killed by Carbon Monoxide produced while an automobile is starting up. "The only reason his car eventually stopped, [Police Chief B] said, was because a body trapped beneath the vehicle slowed it down. |
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| --"But I can get there so much faster in my car."--
An automobile is definitely faster than many other forms of transportation, but only under ideal conditions. Having traveled on my humble bicycle in equal or less time than an automobile on several instances, I can truly refute this belief. Whether it's cold starting, traffic, lack of parking, or digging an auto out of the snow, several factors reduce the door to door time of an auto trip. For most trips under 5 miles (the average for most errands) bicycle or bus travel is equally fast.
start my car at six |
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 The best example of this is a trip which I took with several friends in which we both left Rochelle Park, NJ at the same time on a 90 degree summer day. After traveling over 13 miles, crossing two rivers, climbing an 8% grade, crossing the George Washington Bridge, and arriving in Harlem I met my friend who had arrived home about 2 minutes before me. Apparently the heavy traffic on the bridge had so reduced their traveling time that it equaled the speed of a bicycle. |
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--"Well you certainly can't travel with children on a bicycle."--
 Since I will not be having children, this question has been a difficult one for me. I have seen numerous parents happily traveling with their sons and daughters along bike paths around the country. In fact the only places where parents feel uncomfortable pulling their kids, is ironically enough on the streets. Why? Because of all those large minivans and SUVs driven by parents who feel similarly squeamish about carrying their kids on a bike. If all of those parents were to pick up a bike trailer (for 1/1000th the cost of a minivan) and 'drive' their kids to school by human power, there would be no danger to kids walking or riding to school. According to the U.S. Department of Safety automobiles are the highest cause of death for children under 15 years old. So save your childrens' lungs (and perhaps their lives) by using auto alternatives. Dozens of Portland parents show the simplicity of transporting children without the need for an automotive enclosure. And the $7000 annual savings can be put into a college fund for the young one.. Jonathan Maus shares his thoughts of riding with his wife and two daughters at the New Years Ride. |
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--"But I have to look appropriate at work, I can't arrive all sweaty."-- Commuting by bicycle to a job with a stringent dress code is nothing unusual in many bike friendly cities. Having traveled in temperatures ranging from 0 degrees F to as high as 100 degrees F, I have held several jobs where appropriate dress was mandatory. There are numerous simple solutions to this dilemma. Some will elect to leave extra clothes at work and change, some will carry an outfit on a bike rack, while others will simply ride slowly in work clothes. Whatever the option, 5 minutes in the restroom with some towelettes will do wonders for that post-ride sheen. These people will also feel refreshed, and exhilarated from their ride rather than stressed and frustrated. I've learned that for some of my co-workers, I can't cheerfully greet them first thing in the morning, because they're neither fully awake nor cheerful until the first cup of coffee. For those who are unable to use the options listed above (or if your commute is more than 5-7 miles, I suggest combining the bike trip with public transportation. Most transit systems today accomodate bicycles, and the transit can take out more than half the cycling distance. |
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| --"At least my car keeps me protected from the weather."--
While it's difficult to speak of the joys of cycling (or taking the bus) while it's raining cats and dogs. I personally enjoy the connection to mother nature that I experience when unusual weather passes through. It is the most simple way to appreciate the awesome power of Earth's atmosphere. However most suburbanites want to avoid any such 'inconvenience.' As little as a century ago, walking out into the rain required little more than an umbrella, and boots. Modern Americans believe that their environment must change to suit their comfort rather than adjusting themselves to suit the environment. It takes little more than a good jacket, shoe covers, and fenders (or an umbrella for bus commuters) to stay dry in a rainstorm. (1) And such commuters will be better prepared for the unexpected because they dress for the weather rather than simply pumping up the defogger. Plus if my bicycle becomes impractical due to weather conditions, I can always put it on the rack of the nearest bus and arrive at my destination. The same cannot be said for a motor vehicle.
For those who only venture outside when it's dry and 72 degrees I can only argue that such days will become increasingly rare due to the atmospheric effects produced by air pollution. |
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--"But it was just an 'accident' I didn't mean to."--
Most automobile drivers
label a 'fender bender' as an accident. This has become so ubiquitous
that even urban planners have been using this term. Now when an individual operates a 3-4000 pound motor vehicle, that person is taking on an enormous responsibility. I have found it rare to meet an auto driver who truly appreciates this responsibility. Given that an automobile averages 40mph, that car will travel 58 feet per second. Now given that an average car (probably not an SUV) will require 67 feet to stop at the above stated speed. This means that an automobile driver has 2 seconds to spot and react to an unexpected danger. The fact that this is humanly impossible is reflected in the number of car crashes announced each weekday morning. The effects of such danger is that consumers have increasingly sought out ever larger vehicles so that they can feel safe (and screw the other guy who's hit). Those who previously bought minivans to feel safe, then had to fear from people driving SUVs. They therefore bought SUVs also, but now they have to fear someone driving a Hummer. The situation has escalated to the point where drivers are not only expressing road-rage in their driving habits, some are actively shooting at each other. Not only does this exemplify our worsening state of society, but it continues to create an ever increasing thirst for oil which is dangerously shifting world politics. (2) If changes aren't made quickly, terrorism - wrought by the desperate - will further destabilize world economies. It therefore must be stated that I don't believe auto drivers purposefully look to endanger people's lives (above examples excepted). The argument presented here is meant to make obvious the fact that we are all human, and as human beings we make mistakes. The reason that automobiles cause such a high percentage of city damage is that any mistake made in an automobile can become deadly in an instant. Author's Note: |
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What will the world's auto users do when the price of gasoline begins to
reflect the true cost of extraction and refinement? Well the suggestions
on this page may help. |
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| For more responses to Auto-addiction visit http://www.bikeroute.com/whycar.html
For more bicycle images visit http://www.bikereader.com/BikeReader/images/photography.html |
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Note: All images are the property of yourbodypower.org unless otherwise noted. |
This belief can be answered by simple physics. 
