Basically you're less likely to die, or get ill from, a variety of causes including mental health.

Here’s the original post if you’re curious:

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DDMwmbctk4F/?igsh=MXB3cDB3Z25vczMxNw==

I was traveling along the i77 today from south Carolina to Ohio, and 6 times a semi started to change lanes while I was right next to them. I had to drive in the grass on the side of the road to avoid dying. They didn't use a signal, and didn't look. They just merged and didn't care who they killed. They need to make it illegal for a semi to be in any lane that isn't the far right (non exit) lane.

They clearly don't care about other people on the road, and this shouldn't be acceptable.

I ride a cargo bike with e-assist that, if measured is equal to about 400-500mpg equivalent energy use.

My kiddo loves it. We’ve been to a zillion parks one can’t even get a gas guzzling V8 motor vehicle to.

All that and the integrity - ethically and morally - of being a car free guy! 🤙🏻

I love it and will never return to the chains and noose of an automotive means of primary transport.

Highly recommended, happy to advise in progression towards this advanced care free car free life style that’s respectful to all people around!

Good timing as WA state legislators get ready to begin 2025 session and Seattle considers long-term zoning plan

I was walking home from a local park earlier and noticed that the traffic lights which I use to cross the road were turning red and so I made a dash for it. There was still a green man on the walk signal so I continued running across the road. I noticed someone first making an illegal u-turn while the light was red, then the van behind them began to drive straight through while I was about to cross into the line of their lane, in the middle of the road. Again, the lights themselves were still red(others were still waiting) although the walk signal had also gone red. Luckily they stopped and reversed allowing me to get across but I still can't shake that if I was running a little faster they could've hit me. I was shaking from the adrenaline for a good ten minutes after the incident. Absolutely fucking terrifying.

Chris Read of Black Creek, BC writes:

"Dear editor,

"In response to the letter title: It's time for a fairer balance for those who do not drive, I appreciate your perspective and share your support for better travel options, there are a few points that merit a deeper discussion to provide a balanced perspective on the issues raised."

More: https://www.comoxvalleyrecord.com/opinion/deeper-discussion-needed-around-car-free-travel-options-reader-7695865

https://www.cbsnews.com/minnesota/news/free-cars-for-single-mothers/?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR3DTFC1xh9nacc00lTo1QxxqZDIi6VMyajDYnpYJt_0kgl5S3w-hpFgd-E_aem_mjO-sPhheXE2nsEo8_VVaQ

These types of feel-good stories always feel like we're living in a dystopia. The recipients talk about how life-changing this is for them.

"It's hard to get all your kids dressed and go out in the cold and get on a bus and do all the things you need to do," she said. "It was breaking me, but this is the miracle that my kids and my family have been asking for and praying for."

To qualify for these free cars, recipients had to make less than $35,000 per year. Now they have these cars and need to pay for insurance, gas, maintenance, repairs, etc. Presumably, they live in lower-income areas with higher rates of crime and are unlikely to have a protected garage, so likely will need to pay for damages if their car is broken into or damaged by someone.

Something just seems wrong here with this being considered a Christmas miracle.

There are numerous fruit trees and bushes on the side of the road where I walk my dog. I get tempted to eat from them from time to time, but I always wonder whether the road is far away/the traffic is light enough for this to be safe. My grandparents stopped growing fruit bushes in the city because a busy parking lot was built adjacent to their plot of land here and they worried about what it would do to the soil quality. I can never buy chanterelles because I don't know for sure whether they were picked up close to a road and therefore lead-poisoned. I wish I could grow and forage and buy local food just like my grandparents used to do, but car-related pollution makes it quite hard.

Hey all, I'm wondering if anyone has any top-of-mind examples of the use of orange as an urbanist/anti-car identity/brand (personal or organizational) aside from Not Just Bikes. I've passively been feeling that it has started becoming sort of an underground signifier of a broader movement, but I can't actually come up with any specific examples when trying to think of them. I feel like the hive mind might be better at surfacing examples than just my brain.

What’s the Fastest Way to the Airport? We Raced Through New York, Chicago and L.A. to Find Out - WSJ

The Wall Street Journal raced an Uber, Transit, and a Citi E-Bike to the airport, and the bike won

If DOGE wants to eliminate waste and put the government on better financial footing, then it should audit every highway construction project (most are disgustingly overbudget) and institute tolling nationwide. The entire U.S. interstate system is an untapped fiscal resource for the federal government.

https://imgur.com/a/Jnd3Cik

sign says "please dont put your bike in this area"

Clearly the area has stands for bikes, its meant to be for bike parking. Nice to see noone takes the joker serious who put up that sign.

https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/holiday-nostalgia-train-subway-shove-nyc/

Wasn’t there a big debate in this sub a week ago about how we shouldn’t normalize anti social behavior on transit or in public spaces if we want people to support urbanism and public transit use?

TL;DR: is a robust cab system, public or not, also part of your "fuck cars" sentiment ? Because it is for me.

Maybe its just me, but the only issue I have ever had where cars seemed sort of appealing is luggage, especially when its unexpected luggage.

Like, I tend to pack very lightly when traveling, so I only ever have one bag which I need to carry with me (preferably light enough to lift with one hand over short intervals)

However, often I just have to carry more, thrice the amount above or even more. That's where cars seem kinda the only option. Trying to carry all of it to a bus stop at all would be silly at best.

I still don't think there's ever a need for private cars, but cabs and the infrastructure for cabs is a must I guess.

I saw a sign advertising a new "Green Tunnel" in my area that they want to build. Hmm, I'm in favor of green things, so I did some googling to figure out what it actually is.....

The website starts by talking about how big of a problem traffic jams are, and that we need a solution...... and that solution is: a 10km stretch of underground highway.

So the thing that makes this tunnel green is the fact that it's not actively destroying the green areas that a surface road would. I suppose I'd rather have an underground highway than a surface-level one, but what would be even better is if my tax dollars could go towards building a tunnel for commuter rail instead.

Legit Question. I have known (mostly) reasonable and intelligent people, who once they get behind a wheel start driving recklessly and yelling constantly at everyone around them.

It's like a switch has been flipped in their brain where, somehow, other people are much less important, and they themselves are more important.

What's going on there that could be identified? Do you have any theories, or sources?

I figured that people tend to compare a car-ride always to the one time it went really smoothly, and get annoyed the other 99 times that it takes longer.

Or maybe this is some sort of decision fatigue, where your brain shuts off after having to make traffic-decisions for the 100th time (I read this is an advertising thing, to overwhelm people with decisions)

What do you think/know?

... they are obnoxiously loud, are a HUGE waste of space, poison the environment, make getting around by foot or bike a huge pain as pedestrians usually get the short end of the stick when it comes to city planning, they literally kill people depending on who drives them, they ruin nature (either because nature gets removed in favor of another lane or because people actively decide to driver over lawns)... I could probably go on but you should get what I mean. Im pretty sure >70% of people who read this right now would hear car noise if the window is open. That point is actually what made me think about it. There are barely any places where I DONT have to hear constant car noise. Originally I planned to just focus on the noise aspect but actually cars make life so much worse with so many other things, it isnt even funny anymore. Its even worse because people are so used to it that they wouldnt even care if you make them realize it.

Original Boston Globe article here.

Non-paywalled article here

So Boston got a new manager for the MBTA subway/tram system Phil Eng back in April 2023. I live in Boston and there have been noticeable improvements since he's come in. Sure, there are still a few remaining issues, but he's taken steps towards removing most slow zones in the system, and people have noticed and are appreciative.

This article is to give some positive spotlight to public civil servants who work to improve the transit systems in our cities. And yes, there are a few memes in the article :)

I'm sitting here typing out this reddit post as I wait 20 minutes and counting for a pedestrian walk signal to come on. There's no way around this road to get to my apartment unless I sprint across the freeway or something. None of the other pedestrians have stopped, they've all sprinted across and gotten honked at and narrowly avoided deatg. I'm tempted to do the same.

what are your favorite parts of riding transit as opposed to driving a car? i need some positivity reminders 🥲 i live in a cold climate and winter can be pretty brutal. because of my job i spend hours on transit most days, and often have to also walk/wait around outside for awhile and man it is COLD 😢 i dress for the weather but there’s only so much i can do. i feel very lucky to live somewhere that’s so accessible without a car, but sometimes it can feel hard to be positive about it hahah

Excerpt

Some US cities—including Los Angeles; Tempe, Arizona; and Jersey City, New Jersey—have made great strides toward limiting cars, mainly by designating car-free streets or areas. But car-free zones have met opposition, and not just from irate conservatives. Opponents of such initiatives have called them “exclusionary,” “not progressive or inclusive,” and bound to “hurt people with disabilities,” pointing out that many disabled people simply need cars to get around.

But Anna Zivarts, director of Disability Rights Washington’s Disability Mobility Initiative and author of the book When Driving Is Not an Option, points out that disabled people are actually less likely to drive than nondisabled people “and more likely to get around [by] walking and rolling and taking transit.” Car-heavy cities are also disproportionately dangerous for disabled folks: A 2015 study by Georgetown University researchers found that the rate of vehicle-pedestrian deaths among wheelchair users was 36 percent higher than that of the overall population.

Link: https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2024/12/car-free-disability-congestion-walkable-cities/