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by haberman 2695 days ago
In the US, cars comprise 90% of land-based passenger miles traveled. [1] In Europe, it's 80-90% in most countries. [2] So if we in the US are "over-reliant" on cars, Europe is not far behind.

Considering that cars are the preferred method of transport for the vast majority of people, you could just as well say that "people who want to leave the house are the villains."

What really bothers me about the Urbanist attitude is that it seems to be based on shaming people for the ways they choose to live and comparing it with a mythical urban car-free utopia that doesn't exist.

I like transit and use it frequently but I detest the shaming and condescension.

[1] https://nhts.ornl.gov/person-miles

[2] https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/images/f/...

1 comments

US pedestrian deaths are at a 25 year high. Be ashamed.

Or don't take the car for short journeys. Be part of a positive change.

Or don't take a job that requires long commutes. People want to live in location A and want a better job in location B and accept the fact they increase the risk of death in others, directly and through pollution, as a reasonable trade-off for their comfort.

I don't drive (34, Sacramento). Most people don't need to drive.

https://smartgrowthamerica.org/dangerous-by-design/

> US pedestrian deaths are at a 25 year high.

So is the population.

> Most people don't need to drive.

This is a depressingly provincial attitude. Public transit is not available within ten miles of a majority of the US population. Widen your perspective.