Four things you should never say to a non-car owner

Not owning a car is a very non-conformist decision in most of America. Here are four things you shouldn't say to someone who's made that choice.

1) "Have you ever considered getting a car? I can't imagine not having one." 
Seriously? Any licensed driver in the US has spent many years living in this car-obsessed culture whose infrastructure is designed almost exclusively for motor vehicle. They've spent years navigating an infrastructure designed to ignore pedestrians and bicyclists and is, in many places, outright hostile to them. Do you seriously think it hasn't crossed their mind? Is it possible that they do a cost-benefit analysis every so often and conclude that it just doesn't make sense to them? Oh and by the way, you're not the only person in the world. Just because you can't imagine not having a car doesn't mean others can't and don't make it happen. You don't condescend to me about having to biking in the rain once in a while and I won't say anything when you're bitching about how much you spend to fill up your gas tank. Deal?

2) "I'd love to not have a car but (insert 20 reasons why they do)." 
I say this with the deepest respect: No one cares. You don't have to explain your personal decisions to me, so long as you don't expect me to explain mine to you. You obviously feel a little guilty about it or else you wouldn't have felt the need to go out of your way to justify yourself. But unless you want the non-car owner to help you figure out how to change it, don't bother me with it. Not interested. Unless the non-car owner is a priest; then maybe he can absolve you.

3) "Oh you're finally getting a car? Congratulations!"
If a long time non-car owner who finally gets a car, there's a good chance he's doing so reluctantly. Besides, it's silly to congratulate him over something like this. It's not like it's splitting the atom.

4) "Oh you're finally getting a car? Don't do that. It's (20 reasons why it's a bad idea)."
Please see 1) and 3). If he's doing so reluctantly, this comment will make him feel like crap. And again, do you think he hasn't seriously considered the pros and cons?

Why you, not big government, should 'do something' about gas prices

I'm sick and tired of hearing people whine that the government “do something” about gas prices. It’s called the free market, as this piece in the Times-Union explains. And there really isn’t anything the government can do in the short-term anyways (not that they should if they could... as a non-driver, I’m tired of subsidizing a car culture that refuses to return the favor). Even the drilling that the Sarah Palins of this country are demanding would not have any meaningful impact on supply for 20 years.

If you're sick of high gas prices, don't cry to mommy big government to do the nebulous 'something.' Do something for yourself. Trade in your gas guzzler for something more efficient. Bike or walk or carpool more often. Take public transit.

(And before anyone tries the false dichotomy, there are more choices than just all car or no car. One can still own a car and have a more efficient model or simply use it less often)
 

Don’t blame the government for your refusal to adapt. 

If food prices go up, I am more careful about what I buy. If electric prices go up, I use power more wisely. If gas prices go up, make more careful transportation choices.

Licensing bicyclists? Not yet.

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports that the city's government has come up with a money-making scheme to license bicyclists.

In general, I'm not a big fan of licensing bikes. It's not because I'm a biker myself and don't want to give the government any more of my money. It's because the infrastructure is not set up to permit bikers to get from here to there in a safe, easy, reasonable manner.

A biker who strictly follows the rules of the road to the letter 100 percent of the time will either not get anywhere or will get killed or maimed. As someone who averages 1500-2000 miles a year on such devices, I can tell you this is an indisputable fact.

A few examples...

Turning left legally requires bikers to get into the same turning lane as motor vehicles. In many places, particularly soulless suburbia, this means taking your life in your own hand. If you live in this area, try turning left from Route 9 (going north) in Queensbury on to Aviation Road using the legally correct lane. Make sure you have a friend nearby to call 9-1-1.

Another good example is stoplights. Many of them will not turn green if only a bicycle is waiting because its sensors do not recognize the bike, thus leaving the biker with no legal option.

Governments should not 'pull a Cuomo' on this one. If they insist on this money grab, upgrade the infrastructure first. Make it so bikers can follow the law safely and efficiently before enacting such a scheme.

Biking benefits everyone

The excellent YES! magazine has a good article on how the city of Chicago is trying to expand ease of use and access for bicycle commuters. Another points out that municipalities who make biking a priority provides benefits everyone, not just cyclists.

Bike friendly in the snow belt

The excellent Yes! magazine has a great piece entitled Lessons From a Surprise Bike Town. The #1 bicycle city in America is not Portland, OR, but snowy Minneapolis. That a city with weather colder that Moscow's can be so bike-friendly is a lesson to towns all across the country. No more excuses!

Bits and pieces

DEATH THREATS IN THE NAME OF ‘LAW AND ORDER’
Albany (NY) County’s district attorney David Soares has admitted that he and his office has received death threats in response to his refusal to prosecute participants of the Occupy Albany movement for non-violent activities like violating curfew. From the infamous pepper spray police thug in Davis, CA to the violent crackdown against peaceful Occupy movements in places like Oakland and Denver to the above death threats, you’ve seen remarkably little violence from those protesting in the name of democracy with most of the violence being committed by people doing so in the name of ‘respect for law and order.’ Quite a different reality to the one intoned by the yapping heads.

---

WHAT’S THE STRANGE COMBINATION OF LETTERS ON THAT STREET SIGN (B-I-K-E L-A-N-E) SIGNIFY?
Bravo to the Burlington, mayored by a Progressive Party mayor not coincidentally, for lowering the speed limiton the Vermont city’s streets. The Burlington Free Press reports that it was done to enhance the safety of bicyclists and pedestrians. Yet another reason Burlington is probably the coolest city in the northeastern US.

---

YES, EVEN REFS ARE HUMAN TOO
Recent stories in the soccer world a very troubling, from the attempted suicide of two referees, to the apparent suicide of Wales national team manager Gary Speed to the suicide not that long ago of German goalkeeper Robert Enke. It should serve as a wake-up call reminding soccer fans that a little re-humanization is long past due. There is so much vitriol and nastiness in soccer fandom that it’s easy to forget that the targets are all human beings, with families and emotions. Passion should never be used as an excuse to act like barbarians.

---

IN DISTRACTION WE TRUST
Economic inequality, unemployment, massive corporate welfare, institutionalized anti-democracy... the country is facing so many problems and what is the latest meaninglessness that Theocrats want us to freak out about? The president’s failure to mention God in his Thanksgiving address (only the spoken one; he did include it in the written one). You can just call it The Great Distraction.

---

THE REVOLUTION WILL BE TELEVISED... JUST NOT HERE
I saw this great graphic on Facebook, which showed the covers of TIME magazines editions for other parts of the world compared to its US edition. Gives you an insight into the editorial judgment [sic] of their vaunted professional editors.

---

THE PROBLEM WITH COLLEGE STUDENTS: THEY HAVE TOO *LITTLE* DEBT
I was gobsmacked to read a newspaper article with this headline: "The other student loan problem: too little debt." Only a bank-obsessed culture would look at this issue and wonder if the problem is students with too *little* debt rather than taking a hard look at whether a university education, whether the cost of a fancy piece of paper is massively overpriced. Investigative journalism at its finest.

Tips for driving like a non-crazy person

As many of you know, bicycling is my primary form of transportation. To my amazement, I was once told that some people thought I didn’t drive because maybe I’d been convicted of DWI (not correct, for the record). Around here, like most of America, biking as a form of transportation is as incomprehensible as the notion of reading a book for enjoyment.

For the second time in eight days, I came within less than a yard of being hit on my bicycle by a clueless driver, so it’s unfortunately time for a bit of a rant on the topic.

I’ll say this as clearly as I can.

DRIVERS MUST SHARE THE ROAD

I don’t care if you like it. I don’t care if you resent it. My taxes help pay for that road too so deal with it.

Being impatient and self-absorbed are qualities we easily slap on teenagers, but the truth is that adults in today’s society are just as guilty of this. In fact, their careless self-absorption is often more harmful because they have more means to inflict harm, however inadvertently.

Some argue that senior citizens should be subjected to regular re-testing to maintain their driver’s licenses. I’m starting to believe that all drivers should be subjected to this. I’ve been nearly hit many times over the years and while sometimes it’s been a younger driver and sometimes an older driver at fault, most often it’s been middle aged people. And contrary to popular belief, males tend to be worse drivers than females. Sorry guys, it’s true. If you don’t believe me, ask an actuary.

So here are a few tips I have for how not to be a complete twit while driving...

-Realize that you do not have the right of way while turning over a biker who’s going straight. You may, with every bone in your body, want to run him over so you can get to the next stop sign two seconds faster, but you really shouldn’t. The Big Mac you're so eager to scarf down will still be there.

-You are legally obligated to use your turn signal every time you turn, even when (you think) there is no one behind you. I will signal to help you out; you can do the same.

-Just as turn signals on your car are not merely decorative, neither are mirrors. You can look at them for reasons other than just fixing your hair. I'm told some drivers actually check mirrors to see if anybody's behind them.

-Even in supermarket/big box store parking lots, stop signs are not suggestions.

-If there is a car stopped and waiting to turn left and you want to go right into the shoulder to go around him, actually look before you do so.

-If you are yacking on your cell phone or texting while driving, I hope you get a ticket every single time. Truth is, you’re not nearly as good doing those two things at once as you think.

Until drivers start doing these things and actually respecting the rules of the road, I think I should start carrying a paintball gun while I’m biking.

"We don't budget for sidewalks"

The Saratogian ran an article about how residents in Saratoga Springs want more and better sidewalks. The request was pooh-poohed by city leaders. DPW Chief Skip Scirocco said, "We don’t put any money in our budget for sidewalks."

(Probably not a surprise to Jim Kunstler)

Cool... that must mean that people in Saratoga who walk, bike and take the bus everywhere don't have to pay taxes... right?

The pointlessness of No Gas Day

It’s silly season again... that time when people boycott gas stations for a day and then pat themselves on the back thinking they’ve actually "made a statement." Of course, that statement is "Meaningless gestures are much easier than actually doing something."

(If you need a reminded on why such days is useless, read my earlier essay on the topic)

If you'd rather eschew empty symbolism, check out this piece from The Christian Science Monitor. It offers 10 suggestions on how to lower gas consumption. They may be small and *gasp* require effort, but they actually make a difference.

Upstate NY shafted on rail and electric

So apparently New York, the third most populous state in the country, got a mere $151 million out of the Obama administration's $8 billion allocated for rail improvements. Planet Albany wonders if this is due to New York not being a swing state (Obama beat McCain in the state 62-36 pct) or due to the ineffectiveness of the state's Congressional delegation (29 of its 31 members belong to Obama's Democratic Party).

For its part, the Herkimer County Progressive places the blame on the state itself for not investing enough in rail. Presumably, this was seen by the feds as lack of interest in much needed upgrades to the mass transit system in upstate NY.

Lack of reliable public transit is one thing holding back economic development in upstate. Sky-high electricity costs are another. And it's only going to get worse.

The giant power monopoly National Grid wants to raise its electric rates by 20 percent. National Greed already has among the highest power rates in the nation, according to the Syracuse Post-Standard.

As I've written about several times before, the power monopoly regularly gouges customers with its nebulous "delivery charge." I personally have had several months where the "delivery" for my electricity cost at least twice as much as the actual power itself. Can you imagine if a pizza place charged you an extra $20 to deliver a $10 pizza? But apparently National Greed can get away with it, all with the collaboration of the state's dubiously named Public Service Commission.

At least you can say one thing about National Greed, the monopoly open about their intent. The Post-Standard article said Tom King, president of National Grid in the United States, said the company needs to make higher profits in order to attract money from shareholders.

Mass transit popular despite clueless opposition

While the clueless Post-Star yet again editorializes against mass transit, the Times-Union reports that the northeastern routes on Amtrak had a record-breaking Thanksgiving period.

The Post-Star's hostility to public transportation manages the neat trick of being both small-minded and elitist at the same time.

Gas taxes only cover something like 60 percent of the cost of construction and maintenance of roads and bridges. That means the other 40 percent comes out of the general fund. That means that I, as a non-driver, am subsidizing roads for the cars of the Post-Star's editorial board members. I am subsidizing their choice to rely on a car so they can exercise their "right" to drive two blocks to get a six-pack of beer but they have the audacity to deny me the choice of reliable, relevant public transportation?

Wise public policy is should use public money to subsidize the MOST efficient option. In the Post-Star's bizarroworld, money is hemorrhaged to subsidize the LEAST efficient option. Sadly, this bizarroworld pretty much describes the America of the last 60 years.

Screw the pedestrians!

I've written before about problems with the president's 'Stimulus' package, particularly its emphasis on wasting the $800,000,000,000 on what can be done quickly rather than doing things right or doing what's needed.

I wrote: This crystallized for me some months ago when I heard New York Gov. David Paterson's remarks while inaugurating some road project in the Albany suburbs. He was asked by a reporter why the road did not include a bike path. You have to remember this is Stimulus money, the governor insisted. It's Stimulus money. It's Stimulus money.

[...]

Basically, Paterson said that because the project was being paid for with Stimulus money, the most important thing was that it be done quickly -- not that it be done well, not that it be done efficiently or in a beneficial way, but that it be done as fast as possible.

So paying for some suburban road project that will only stimulate more traffic congestion is an acceptable use of funds, but building a sidewalk so schoolchildren don't have walk along the shoulder of a major state highway was denied.

I know public policy in this country is generally hell-bent on subsidizing the least efficient, most environmentally damaging form of transportation, the private, single-person automobile. But with $800,000,000,000 floating around, you'd think they'd at least be able to throw the occasional bone to bicyclists and schoolchildren.

Should cities cater to autos or humans?

CBC Radio's The Current has an interesting discussion on moves in Canada's two largest cities to facilitate commuting by bicycle. Both Toronto and Vancouver shut down a car lane on one of their main streets and turned each into two bike lanes. Not surprisingly, the move to expand transportation options has proved controversial. But as Toronto's mayor rightly pointed out, the purpose of roads is not to move cars, but to move people. I suspect Jim Kunstler would agree.

In addition to the obvious environmental and quality of life costs of society's fetish with the automobile, one of the guests points out the huge economic opportunity costs of so many cars. Expensive urban land that's devoted to ever expanding roads and parking lots is land that's not being devoted to something that produces economic wealth. So we're spending money in order to reduce the possibilities of making money.

Hell has officially frozen over (with correction)

The town of Queensbury has done the taken the most unbelievable, implausible, out of character action I could have possibly imagined.

They did something to benefit pedestrians and bicyclists!

Those of you who didn't faint at reading these must not be aware that Queensbury is far and away the most hostile municipality in this area toward non-motor vehicles.

Prior to this amazing act, the Queensbury town government had seen biking as something only done inside the fitness center and walking as something down between the fitness center door and the car in the parking lot.

Amazingly, Queensbury built sidewalks on both sides of Route 9 from the Great Escape (or Six Flags Whateveritscallednow) all the way down to the town line where it hooked up with the city of Glens Falls' extensive sidewalk network.

This historic act allows walkers and bikers to transport themselves (you know, to places like THEIR JOBS) without risking life and limb and it increases the amount of sidewalk in the town by approximately 3 million percent.


Correction: I don't publish unsigned comments however an anonymous commenter informed me that the sidewalk work was done by New York state and that (unsurprisingly, I suppose) the town had no role.

Majority of deaths on NYC roads are pedestrians and cyclists

Adirondack Almanack blog had a good essay on 'The Dangers of Americade.'

Anyone who lives in a tourist area knows that embracing tourism is like making a deal with the devil. Residents of Lake George, where Americade is held, often complain about the four scourges tourists bring with them: noise, traffic, garbage and general rudeness and self-absorption. But residents never complain about the money (and thus jobs) generated. A deal with the devil indeed!

Almanack's focus was on the physical dangers faced by motorcycles in the car-centric culture. He scolds Americade's organizers for burying their head in the sand to this problem by focusing more on the family-friendly aspect of the rally. Almanack writes:

The promoters of Americade need to be reminded that it isn't the rebellious who are the danger at Americade. The danger is that Americaders, and others, have to share our common roadways with highway hogs.

Americade's promoters and participants have the perfect opportunity to engage us in serious ideas about sharing the roadway with people using other forms of transportation - bikes, cars, trains, buses, and feet.

Almanack cites a very astonishing and disturbing fact. Not only does New York City have the highest number of pedestrian and (bi)cyclist deaths in the entire nation. But on roads suffocated by automobiles, [p]edestrian and cyclist deaths make up a majority of traffic deaths.

I don't own a car. While I sometimes use public transportation in the winter, biking and walking is pretty much how I get around. I've dodged many an idiot driver who was distracted by yacking on their cellphone or by opening their car door without even taking a glance. Frankly, I've always thought it was amazing that I've never been injured while biking. When I read disturbing stats like this, even in a far away place like New York City, I think it's a miracle.

And then I think of the odds and the future and suddenly the glee wears off.

We need a more sane transportation system in this country. I recognize that cars will be the primary form of transportation for the foreseable future, at least oil starts running out. But planning authorities and governments must stop being so overtly hostile to people who want to use alternative forms of transportation.

I don't want to ban cars. I just don't want to risk life and limb biking down (US) Route 9. I just want sidewalks to walk on (this means you Queensbury, NY). People will use these saner alternatives if it's feasible and safe to do so. They just need a little cooperation from the powers that be.


Recommended reading:

-Transportation Alternatives: 'Advocate for cycling, walking and environmentally sensible transportation.' New York City-based but still worth checking out.

-League of American Bicyclists.

-James Howard Kunstler: Author of 'The Geography of Nowhere.'