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5 miles is a long walk. That’s at least 1 hour and 15 minutes for a very fast walker, and probably around 2 hours for a more typical walker. Plus you have to w

by D13Fd 10mo ago

5 miles is a long walk. That’s at least 1 hour and 15 minutes for a very fast walker, and probably around 2 hours for a more typical walker. Plus you have to walk back, with groceries. Assuming you are feeding a family and not doing this 2-4 hour round trip every day, that means you’ll need a cart to push or pull. Good luck pushing that loaded cart on a road with any amount of traffic. Most places in the U.S. where the grocery store is 5 miles away will involve either zero sidewalks and dangerous roads (more rural/suburban areas), or many many road crossings with lights that slow you down (denser areas). I’m a big fan of walking. But 5 miles to a grocery store and then back is going to be way too much and too dangerous for most people.

e-dant 10mo ago
It is an accomplishment in a healthy, pro-social environment.
- calmbonsai 10mo ago
  But it's only a good judgment call if you have the available transit + shopping time, able body, suitable climate, and a single store that has everything you need. If any of those conditions are not satisfied then it's better economic utility to outsource that entire task and get your exercise and socialization by going to the gym. You can even walk to the gym too. You can outsource almost anything except exercise.
- oblio 10mo ago
  It's still not practical. Humans just walk too slowly. Let's be realistic here and accept the fact that anything that involves more than 1km of walking one way won't happen for 99% of people. That's why we have bikes, for distances from 1km to 10-12km (one way). And only after that should we have cars. Cars should also be reserved for very heavy loads (more than 50kg), groups of people (not single drivers, 2+ people in the car), and various other niche uses.
  - WackyFighter 10mo ago
    > And only after that should we have cars. Cars should also be reserved for very heavy loads (more than 50kg), groups of people (not single drivers, 2+ people in the car), and various other niche uses. There is a (slightly) tongue in cheek video you should watch. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfBgQjByvXI https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfBgQjByvXI I don't want to spend 6 hours commuting a daily in the UK. I've done this btw in the UK a decade ago. It was miserable. It just isn't possible to commute in places without a car. Especially once you get outside of a main transit hubs.
    - oblio 10mo ago
      And that is perfectly fine, nobody should be exerting themselves needlessly. Where a car makes the most sense, use it. But we should all campaign for better public transit, good bike infrastructure, good walking infrastructure, less car-only infrastructure, etc, etc.
      - WackyFighter 10mo ago
        > And that is perfectly fine, nobody should be exerting themselves needlessly. Where a car makes the most sense, use it. That wasn't what you were suggesting by the way we worded it.
        oblio 10mo ago
        I said: > Cars should also be reserved for [...] and various other niche uses. to which you replied: > I don't want to spend 6 hours commuting a daily in the UK. I've done this btw in the UK a decade ago. It was miserable. 6 hours per day commuting is 3 hours one way, which in almost every country in the world is called "super commuting" and it affects a very small minority of people: https://www.jmfassociates.co.uk/news/news/how-long-is-the-average-commute https://www.jmfassociates.co.uk/news/news/how-long-is-the-av... -> the average commute is under 30 minutes each way. -> commutes longer than 2 hours affect only 2% of workers. So yeah, that's what "niche" means. Besides that, I literally listed some recommended distances (up to 1km for walking, up to 10-12k for cycling), don't tell me your commute was 3h one way for a distance under 12km? You can walk 12km in less than 3h one way :-)

by D13Fd 10mo ago

e-dant 10mo ago

It is an accomplishment in a healthy, pro-social environment.

calmbonsai 10mo ago
But it's only a good judgment call if you have the available transit + shopping time, able body, suitable climate, and a single store that has everything you need. If any of those conditions are not satisfied then it's better economic utility to outsource that entire task and get your exercise and socialization by going to the gym. You can even walk to the gym too. You can outsource almost anything except exercise.
oblio 10mo ago
It's still not practical. Humans just walk too slowly. Let's be realistic here and accept the fact that anything that involves more than 1km of walking one way won't happen for 99% of people. That's why we have bikes, for distances from 1km to 10-12km (one way). And only after that should we have cars. Cars should also be reserved for very heavy loads (more than 50kg), groups of people (not single drivers, 2+ people in the car), and various other niche uses.
- WackyFighter 10mo ago
  > And only after that should we have cars. Cars should also be reserved for very heavy loads (more than 50kg), groups of people (not single drivers, 2+ people in the car), and various other niche uses. There is a (slightly) tongue in cheek video you should watch. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfBgQjByvXI https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfBgQjByvXI I don't want to spend 6 hours commuting a daily in the UK. I've done this btw in the UK a decade ago. It was miserable. It just isn't possible to commute in places without a car. Especially once you get outside of a main transit hubs.
  - oblio 10mo ago
    And that is perfectly fine, nobody should be exerting themselves needlessly. Where a car makes the most sense, use it. But we should all campaign for better public transit, good bike infrastructure, good walking infrastructure, less car-only infrastructure, etc, etc.
    - WackyFighter 10mo ago
      > And that is perfectly fine, nobody should be exerting themselves needlessly. Where a car makes the most sense, use it. That wasn't what you were suggesting by the way we worded it.
      - oblio 10mo ago
        I said: > Cars should also be reserved for [...] and various other niche uses. to which you replied: > I don't want to spend 6 hours commuting a daily in the UK. I've done this btw in the UK a decade ago. It was miserable. 6 hours per day commuting is 3 hours one way, which in almost every country in the world is called "super commuting" and it affects a very small minority of people: https://www.jmfassociates.co.uk/news/news/how-long-is-the-average-commute https://www.jmfassociates.co.uk/news/news/how-long-is-the-av... -> the average commute is under 30 minutes each way. -> commutes longer than 2 hours affect only 2% of workers. So yeah, that's what "niche" means. Besides that, I literally listed some recommended distances (up to 1km for walking, up to 10-12k for cycling), don't tell me your commute was 3h one way for a distance under 12km? You can walk 12km in less than 3h one way :-)