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> But the gasoline has 50x the energy. The total cost to society is 50x higher to operate the bicycle I know your comment was tongue-in-cheek, but energy conte
by tomkinstinch 14y ago
> But the gasoline has 50x the energy. The total cost to society is 50x higher to operate the bicycle
I know your comment was tongue-in-cheek, but energy content =/= cost to society.
The health benefits alone of cycling make it a net win given current costs.
- WildUtah 14y agoMedicare kicks in and absorbs all medical costs at social expense beginning at age 65. Cyclists seldom die before 65, so that is a social cost. Cycling has known cardiovascular side effects. As a result cyclists seldom die suddenly of heart disease, the cheapest of the common ways to die. Another social cost. Everybody dies of something but cyclists are proven to live much longer and consume extensive social resources in their lingering. Triple social cost. The ideal health policy for our nation's fiscal health is to tax cyclists and use the cash to buy cigarettes for young people.
- brc 14y agoYou forgot to include the economic cost to production that occurs when a bicycle courier ends up beneath an SUV. This delays delivery from the SUV, unnecessarily uses up emergency services, and moves delivery onto other, inefficient bicycle couriers who have to take up the slack while the original spends 6 months in hopstial.