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I would actually be very happy if all cars, human driven and self-driving alike, were outlawed from our city center, and forced to just drive and park around th
by ericd 8y ago
I would actually be very happy if all cars, human driven and self-driving alike, were outlawed from our city center, and forced to just drive and park around the periphery. Some European cities are starting to do this. It completely changes the nature of the streets, from dangerous and noisy places that make you feel uneasy to walk near, into places that are safe for everyone to enjoy.
So, bring on the crusades against cars.
- tfha 8y agoI'm all for creating cities where there are no cars, it's a big long term interest of mine to live in such a city. But I don't like the phrasing 'crusades against cars', because it makes it seem like cars are the bad guys. Cars are an incredibly important underpinning of society today, and we should remember that as we innovate certain parts of society to function better without them. We definitely want cars, and we definitely like cars. But we also like city centers that don't have cars, because it seems like that part of society functions better without them.
- ericd 8y agoMany people definitely don’t like or want cars in their current form, especially in the younger generations...
- CamperBob2 8y agoHere's an idea -- why don't you move to a place where your opinion prevails, rather than dictating your preferences to the rest of us? Whenever I argue for less regulation on something, I get told to move to Somalia. Shouldn't this work both ways?
- ericd 8y agoDo you know of a reasonably sized city in the US that offers what I’m talking about? Otherwise, no thanks, I’ll just argue for what I think is best here.
- CamperBob2 8y agoDo you know of a reasonably sized city in the US that offers what I’m talking about? No. Ever stop to wonder if there might perhaps be a reason for that? (That being said, I wouldn't be surprised if either NYC or Seattle comes close to what you're asking for, or will soon.)
- ericd 8y agoThere are a bunch of reasons, but Municode is a large part of it. It’s a big part of the reason for the feeling of sameness of towns across the US. But what’s the reason you were trying to point out?
- CamperBob2 8y agoThe reason is that almost nobody wants to ban cars from the center of almost any American city. It turns out that being able to drive in cities is considered useful by many people. You can stick around and speak up for your point of view, certainly, but unless you pick one of a very few places like the aforementioned NYC and Seattle, you've got a difficult case to make. You certainly won't achieve any traction in Arizona, where the events described in this article took place.
- commandlinefan 8y agoWell, there aren’t many cars in Somalia.
- ericd 8y agoThanks, that's helpful. But there're also some cities in the US that are starting to create pedestrian only streets, so I think I'll stay here and help that along.