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> shift more people to not using cars as much or at all, and having those people walk/bike/transit This only works for city dwellers.
by generalizations 4y ago
> shift more people to not using cars as much or at all, and having those people walk/bike/transit
This only works for city dwellers.
- deleted 4y ago[deleted]
- guelo 4y agoYet somehow humans managed to live through 99.99% of our history without cars.
- yjftsjthsd-h 4y agoAnd people lived their whole lives within what, a 50-mile radius?
- bcrosby95 4y agoHumans managed to live through 99.99% of our history without 99.99% of what we currently rely on to live.
- amelius 4y agoSurviving vs. thriving.
- deleted 4y ago[deleted]
- ekianjo 4y agoWithout phones and electricity too. Your point is ?
- dominotw 4y agoAnd basic fitness which unfortunately rules out 80% of population in usa. Thats really the problem not lack of bike lanes that HN seems to belive is the panacea.
- guelo 4y agoLack of basic fitness is not a permanent chronic condition.
- dominotw 4y agoIt is. How many people do you know that have turned things around, i am guessing not many.
- joshlemer 4y agoProbably because in North America we make it so damn hard to walk or bike anywhere, combined with a culture that teaches us that getting an acceptable level of exercise requires going out of your way to purchase a gym membership and find time in the day 3 times a week to go there, rather than just go outside and walk to get your groceries.
- dominotw 4y agoIs that really the reason though? In India ppl have to walk everywhere, Cars are still a luxury for a majority of the population. yet 50% of the population is obese and has one of the highest heart disease rates anywhere in the world. Obesity is driven mostly by diet, sure walking helps but 90% is diet.
- atlasunshrugged 4y agoI don't think this is true, there are also e-bikes which while much less exercise would mitigate the difficulty and still be some physical activity for Americans
- pdabbadabba 4y ago
- ENGNR 4y agoAnecdotally I used to have to drive 30 minutes through suburbia for any “stuff”, but then moved to a town of ~3000 people and everything is still available, and it’s at most a 5 minute drive away. I do have a car but also cycle quite a bit (eg to work) would do just fine with no car at all
- Falkon1313 4y agoYeah, I moved to a relatively small town. Almost everything is within walking distance. Two pharmacies, two banks, and a grocery store and some other stores and a couple restaurants about a block away. Urgent care, doctor, veterinarian and hospital a couple of blocks further. Downtown, with its theater and restaurants and bars etc. is about a nice leisurely 20 minute walk. People in suburbia could have this too if they just zoned for it. Take out the stupid strip malls and stroads and put the businesses where the people are and vice-versa. Get some actual neighborhoods and communities again. Well out in rural areas is a bit of a different matter. Some people will need cars. But with proper town development and decent public transit, something like 80% of people who aren't way out in rural areas wouldn't need cars except for vacation/road trips. That's not some far-fetched sci-fi idea. It just needs politics to properly utilize what we've had for a long time.
- bertil 4y agoDoes that mean that you expect the rural population to pay heavy taxes on pollution, or to be reduced dramatically? They will be far more exposed to the increase in floods, fires, and hurricanes. Insurance will likely refuse to cover the most common and destructive scenarios.
- makeitdouble 4y agoThe rural -> city hasn’t stopped and modern economies have the vast majority of their citizens in cities. Even for the US rural population is less than 20% [0] https://www.hrsa.gov/rural-health/about-us/what-is-rural https://www.hrsa.gov/rural-health/about-us/what-is-rural
- ryeights 4y agoThe US suburban population is over 50% [1]. It is impossible for these people to walk/bike/transit to work, and there is not an easy way to construct the infrastructure necessary for them to do so. [1]: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-11-14/u-s-is-majority-suburban-but-doesn-t-define-suburb https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-11-14/u-s-is-ma...
- amrocha 4y agoThe city should stop subsidizing these suburbs and I'm sure everyone will move into the city when they have to pay the real cost of their lifestyles
- gadflyinyoureye 4y agoWhere is the housing in the cities getting built? Most are not zoned nor regulated to support such a massive demographic shift.
- throw827474737 4y agoOh yeah, only 56% of the world's population live in cities, then lets forget about that.
- krater23 4y agoYou forgot that they maybee need everyday drive to the work that is not in the city and other people that life not in the city needs to drive in the city.
- throw827474737 4y agoOh yes I totally forgot that and now that changes everything.. erm seriously?
- krater23 4y agoAnd when there's nice weather.