Carectomy - Removing Cars from People

New Take on Getting Animated

Cortney Marsh — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 12:59:50 +0000

Most of us who either have a kid-like look upon life or are around kids for any amount of time have noticed the government’s “Get Active” commercials airing during kids’ regular television shows. It is the government’s attempt to get kids to get off their butts and to go outside and play. They have even hired “famous” preteens such as The Jonas Brothers and Miley Cyrus ( or is it Hannah Montana? I’m not quite sure. All I can tell is that this girl has a bigger split personality disorder then my Aunt Vivian). Even with all the money going into this project I have noticed something: kids are not getting off their tush and going outside. In fact they are staying right where they were, comfortable on the couch.

Then a thought accord to me. If they changed it from “famous” kids to not-so-skinny kids waddling to the fridge for some ice cream maybe that would inspire them. Then of course the government would have to use more money in lawsuits and discriminatory litigations so I scratched the idea. Then a new one came up. Advertise on ABC, NBC, ESPN, all the big adult channels, even Discovery and Food Network. Tell the parents to unplug and take away the cables of the computers, game systems, and televisions for an hour a day. Force the kids outside, or to read, or to do something more productive then letting their behinds grow larger and larger.

Yes I know this will take some collaboration from the parents but isn’t it worth it? I’m tired of seeing five year olds rolling through the mall because their legs can’t carry their body mass. I’m tired of people my age being illiterate because they were always too lazy to even pick up the simplest book. I’m not asking you to overdo it but we need to get back to spending all our summer days with friends outside, at the neighborhood pool, playing hide-and-go-seek for hours at a time and it never getting old, rereading the whole harry potter series before the next movie comes out. Everything that made us into such determined, smart, go getters is being drained out of the next generation and substituted with complacency and laziness. How will their future play out if they are too lazy to reach for the stars? Where will our musicians, writers, artists, and actors be if imagination has been bred out of the masses? This needs to change and it needs to change now. Turn off the TV and get outdoors.

No related posts.

RSS Feed Temporarily Broken

Benjamin Jones — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 14:32:57 +0000

Sorry to all of our readers that follow us via RSS! RSS was down and none of the new posts had updated, so go ahead and check out our recent content and welcome back to Carectomy!

Broken Cities on the Mend

Free Running: The Newest of the Extreme Sports

Cortney Marsh — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 05:39:44 +0000

The extreme sports of skateboarding and BMX have now branched out into running as well. Running is no longer for men in short shorts and spiked shoes. Free running has been born. Basically, free running is getting from point A to point B in the fastest, most flamboyant way possible. Free runners, participants of this new found sport, try to outdo their opponents by performing better or more daring tricks. They do everything from flipping from landing to landing, jumping from building to building, all to perform acrobatics that amaze and astound all who are watching. Unlike other extreme sports, which need bikes or boards and protective padding and helmets, all you need for free running are some tennis shoes and a dare devil personality. You can find free runners anywhere from malls to parks. They have recently shown up in movies, such as Paul Blart: Mall Cop, and video games, such as Core Design.

There are two types of free running a style called Parkour, the art of training your body to overcome obstacles with movement, and free running. There is only one distinct difference between the two. Free running is more of an art form using series of moves spun together at the artist’s will, while Parkour is a martial art and is more uniform. Parkour came first and has been developing as a subculture for a while now. Free running, getting its name from the movie Jump London, is much more recent but is growing fast.

Both have spawned there large communities around them, American Parkour, and have gained the reputation of supporting our national parks and are getting kids up and moving around again. So this poses the question ‘Why drive when you can run with style?’

Happy running.

Carectomy Looking for Writers

Benjamin Jones — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 08:08:49 +0000

Hi all. I took over the site from Hank a bit ago and gave it a little makeover, and I would like to begin filling it with great content again. I decided to take over because of my natural interest in the subject, and it is that same interest that will have me posting from time to time myself.

Anyway, carectomy is a great site, and I would like to keep it that way and add some new, good content to it. Is anyone interesting? If so shoot me an email at benjamin.f.t.jones AT gmail DOT com and let me know your interests / writings skills.

Thanks a bunch!

Benjamin

Carectomy Week in Review 7

Bike-commuting in Japan: 3 Approaches

Benjamin Jones — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 08:07:01 +0000

If you are going to commute by bicycle in Japan, there are three basic approaches to the situation that you can take, depending on the type of commuting that you are looking to do.

Short-distance: Mamachari

Mamachari is Japanese for the “mother chariot,” and these bicycles often can been seen with child baskets on the front and back. More commonly, however, they are the bicycles of young students, old men, and everyone in between.

They are usually cheap, single-speed bicycles that come outfitted with the full compliment of rain and dirt avoiding gear, as well as baskets and racks for hauling things like bags and groceries.

Currently, in addition to my road bike, I own the cheapest mamachari money could buy from a local shop. The bike gets me around the city, but I would not take it further than 5km each way as it can be quite tiresome to ride.

The mamachari is almost never ridden in the street, but usually on Japan’s wide and bicycle-friendly sidewalks. Almost exclusively without a helmet. If it is raining you can generally stay dry by riding with an umbrella in your right hand.

Medium-distance: Mountain bike, mini-velo, or road-racer

If you are looking to go further than just around town, or just don’t like the setup of the mamachari, your next option would likely be some sort of mountain bike. Aside from mamachari, they are the most commonly seen bicycle on the roads here.

Once you get out of the city you will often see people riding this cycles in the streets or on the sidewalk (where there still is one). They often don’t include the same basket space as the mamachari so you will have to carry a backpack if you want to haul things.

Also options are the mini-velo and road racer, which are even more efficient than the mamachari or mountain bike. However, these are less common because of their price.

Long-distance: Road racer

If you are planning to do anything more than 20 mile round trips, I would suggest you pick up a decently geared road bike. Many hills you will encounter in Japan are severe enough that you will want a solid bike to help you get up them so that you don’t end up walking all the time.

If purchasing a bicycle in Japan, you can get decent road bikes for commuting or touring at many larger bike shops. While I often use specialty shops because I have been commuting on my racing bicycle, this isn’t really necessary for the average commuter.

Road bikes can be purchased as cheaply as 800-900 bucks for the lower end of the Bianchi line, which seems to be popular all across Japan. You will also find other American and European makers for sale up from that price.

If commuting with a road bike, I suggest getting yourself a comfortable and roomy messenger bag to carry your things since it is likely your bike won’t be doing the work for you.

Happy commuting!

Car-free in Japan

Benjamin Jones — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 13:07:36 +0000

For the last few weeks I have been living and doing research in rural Japan. Japan is well known for high-speed rail, jam-packed commuter trains, and big, well-connected cities.

I am not living in a place with any of those things. Two years ago when I spent time outside of Tokyo, I was. It was a 5 minute walk to the nearest train station, with two more within 20 minutes of that. From there I could get practically anywhere. No need for a car. I never even had to use the bus save for one or two special trips.

Well, rural Japan is a bit different. Google Maps Japan defaults to route instructions for public transit, but most of the places I am going give a warning “no public transit to this location.” There is a train station about 10 minutes from here, as well as a tram station.

The tram will get you anywhere in town, but doesn’t go much outside of that. The train station, which is currently under construction for the forthcoming high-speed rail line, will take you to destinations 20 to 50 miles away.

Kind of a pain. That’s why more people have cars around here than other places in Japan. So what have I done to avoid renting a car to get around to all the places I’ve been going?

Lots of cycling. At 90-130 kilometers per day (when I’m travelling), this is quite a lot of cycling indeed. It may be a pain, but it has made the area a lot more accessible than it otherwise would have been, even without a car.

Coming soon: A cyclist’s guide to commuting in rural Japan.

Sex Sells Bikes, Bikes Sell Sex?

Joshua Liberles — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 22:20:21 +0000

I have to admit that I don’t quite understand lingerie company Triumph’s rationale behind the publicity stunt captured on video below. Women in their underwear riding in and parading behind a pedicab down a main street in Copenhagen. Cycling is so widespread and mainstream, perhaps it helps to market the merchandise? Without doubt, the hot models aren’t hurting cycling’s cause…

Copehagen Cycle Chic has dubbed it “A Triumph for Cycling in Copenhagen”:

In slightly-related news, also out of Denmark, Zakkaliciousness from Copenhagenzine has made the astute observation that bicycles are making significantly more appearances in pornography. This is not to be confused with the very real British case of the man having sex with a bicycle; rather, the bicycle is a prop in the background or a “vehicle” to the real, ahem, action.

No longer is cheap, cheesy sex restricted to decked-out Harleys and super-macho sports car hoods.

From Copenhagenzine:

There is one surefire sign that bicycles are hot at the moment. It’s not the coverage urban cycling is getting on tv networks or in mainstream newspapers and fashion magazines.

It’s pornography. Increasing numbers of bicycle related porn films are being spotted on adult websites. You read it here first [but you probably noticed yourself, didn't you?] Once again, the adult film industry is a deciding factor in cultural and technological issues.

The adult film industry almost single-handedly killed of Beta in favour of VHS when they decided to back the latter format for the distribution of their films. Every time you view internet streaming and watch clips in the most popular formats, you can thank the porn industry for choosing them and therefore standardising how we view online content. The industry was a major factor in the rapid development of streaming technology and their choices of format killed off all the other competitors to mpeg and avi.

Photo via flickr by Pete Lewis

Bikes Belong at National Party Conventions

Jaymi — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 21:29:53 +0000

Bike advocacy group Bikes Belong is teaming up with health insurance company Humana to provide free loaner bikes to both upcoming political national conventions. 1,000 bikes will be available at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado from August 25-28 and at the Republican National Convention in St. Paul/Minneapolis, Minnesota from September 1-4.

What better way to encourage bike-friendly legislation that to provide the politicos with a saddles-eye view of the bicycle as transportation? Perhaps the effort can even make inroads with the Anti-cycling Administration.

From Bikes Belong:

Our goal is to get convention attendees to ride bikes during both conventions. We know that bikes will be perfect for short trips between hotels, convention centers, restaurants, and the convention arenas. We want delegates, officials, the media—10,000+ per convention—volunteers, and the presidential candidates themselves to develop a greater appreciation and respect for the role of bicycling in big cities … and beyond.

The upright city bikes will come with practical cargo-carrying baskets, helmets, and a lock. Each convention will have between 8 and 10 staffed bike stations to check in and check out the rigs as needed.

Bikes Belong hopes to promote the practicality of bikes for short trips. Their website echoes the mission of Clif Bar’s 2-mile Challenge: 40% of trips undertaken by Americans are shorter than 2 miles – just a few pedal strokes away. These quick jaunts, when undetaken by car, are the most damaging to the environment.

“This effort, like everything Bikes Belong does, is bike-partisan.”

Photo via flickr by mooniker

Biofuels Are Starving Us

Hank Green — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0000

The impact of the rising biofuels market on global food prices is much worse than predicted. According to an as yet unpublished study commissioned by the World Bank, biofuels have caused food prices to rise 75%.

The World Bank completed the study, which has been leaked by the Guardian, at the end of April but has yet to publish it, presumably in deference to Bush’s gung-ho corn ethanol campaign. Another damning study by the British government, due out soon, states that biofuels have “played a significant part in pushing up food prices.”

From the Guardian:

"Political leaders seem intent on suppressing and ignoring the strong evidence that biofuels are a major factor in recent food price rises," said Robert Bailey, policy adviser at Oxfam. "It is imperative that we have the full picture. While politicians concentrate on keeping industry lobbies happy, people in poor countries cannot afford enough to eat."

Rising food prices have pushed 100m people worldwide below the poverty line, estimates the World Bank, and have sparked riots from Bangladesh to Egypt. Government ministers here have described higher food and fuel prices as "the first real economic crisis of globalisation".

President Bush has linked higher food prices to higher demand from India and China, but the leaked World Bank study disputes that: "Rapid income growth in developing countries has not led to large increases in global grain consumption and was not a major factor responsible for the large price increases."

Even successive droughts in Australia, calculates the report, have had a marginal impact. Instead, it argues that the EU and US drive for biofuels has had by far the biggest impact on food supply and prices.

Food prices have risen 140% since 2002. Higher prices for energy and petroleum-based fertilizier accounts for 15% while researchers linked biofuels to a whopping 75% increase.

While no biofuel has yet proven efficacious, the government-pushed corn-based ethanol program is particularly disastrous. The massive amounts of petroleum fertilizer dumped on the fields, eventually running into the ocean, has caused an increase in the Dead Zone; we’re increasing the smog and ozone levels and causing more deaths from asthma and respiratory illnesses; and the energy yield from corn is laughable.

From Bloomberg.com:

Say you were able to cultivate every acre of Illinois for corn-based ethanol. This is purely hypothetical as it would involve bulldozing Chicago and other cities and towns in the Prairie State. As an Illinois resident surrounded by cornfields, fleeing demolition is not my relocation fantasy.

One of the potentially most productive corn-growing states on the planet would yield about 5.7 billion bushels of corn and 16 billion gallons of ethanol, according to Charles Washburn, professor emeritus at California State University. He has researched the subject over the past 45 years.

The Illinois mega-crop would provide only 0.8 percent of annual U.S. gasoline and diesel-fuel use, Washburn estimates, subtracting the energy it takes to create ethanol.

Of course, U.S. energy consumption isn’t a static beast. Washburn further projects that “a new corn field the size of Illinois would be required to meet our transportation energy growth every seven months.”

Cycling Increases S.F. Pollution?

Joshua Liberles — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0000

Thanks to through-the-roof gas prices, the number of cyclists nationwide has increased dramatically. As cities rush to improve cycling-friendly infrastructure and implement bike-sharing systems, San Francisco’s progress has been hamstrung by eccentric political activist Rob Anderson.

Just as S.F. was on the brink of implementing a comprehensive pro-bike plan citywide in 2005, Anderson sued to have a thorough environmental-impact review conducted. The report is due about a year from now and, according to the Wall Street Journal, Anderson already plans to oppose its findings.

From WSJ:

Cars always will vastly outnumber bikes, he reasons, so allotting more street space to cyclists could cause more traffic jams, more idling and more pollution. Mr. Anderson says the city has been blinded by political correctness. It’s an "attempt by the anti-car fanatics to screw up our traffic on behalf of the bicycle fantasy," he wrote in his blog this month…

He continues to blog from his apartment in an old Victorian home. "Regardless of the obvious dangers, some people will ride bikes in San Francisco for the same reason Islamic fanatics will engage in suicide bombings — because they are politically motivated to do so," he wrote in a May 21 post.

Thanks to carectomy patient James for the info.

Photo via flickr by richardmasoner

Consumers Fed Up with Ethanol

Joshua Liberles — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0000

At Carectomy, we’ve spent significant ink (err… pixels) lambasting the “solution” that biofuels provide. Now, as the NY Times reports, consumers are getting fed up with the ethanol mixed in with their gas to boot. It’s not an awakening of conscience; they just don’t think the stuff works.

From the NY Times:

Many consumers complain that ethanol, which constitutes as much as 10 percent of the fuel they buy in most states, hurts gas mileage and chokes the engines of their boats and motorcycles.

And, from Gristmill:

In Oklahoma, some vendors are refusing to sell ethanol-spiked gasoline. And they’re winning customers with signs like "No Corn in Our Gas" and "Why Do You Put Alcohol in Your Tank?" the Times claims. In Oregon, new rules requiring the state’s fuel supply be E10 — a mix of 90 percent gasoline and 10 percent ethanol — are being associated with sputtering boat engines and failing weed whackers.

Beyond the functional concerns, biofuels in general, and ethanol specifically, just aren’t doing anything to improve our environmental impact. Unless we’re recycling grease from the fry-o-lator, biofuels are doing more harm than good. In fact growing our fuel looks to be worse that relying on gasoline. More land devoted towards transportation needs means less food and more global hunger. Battle lines are being drawn between fueling the weatlhy’s SUVs and supplying sustenance for the poor – and guess who will win that one? Biofuel production has led to increased deforestation and, in turn, more global warming.

Gristmill, again:

Meanwhile, taxpayers are shelling out billions for the troubles they perceive at the pump. Consider that in one of many, many government handouts to ethanol makers, tax payers surrender 51 cents in revenue for every gallon of ethanol that gets mixed into the fuel supply. This year, government mandates dictate that we mix in 9 billion gallons, a level that will climb to 15 billion gallons by 2015.

It’s U.S. business and politics as usual. The efficiency of the country’s corn-based ethanol production, in terms of energy put in and energy yielded, is laughable. Yet it’s politically popular as it continues to support agribusiness and, indirectly, the oil industry. As wealth is further redistributed to the rich few we pay not just in money but with our soil, climate, planet, and health.

Photo via flickr by sroemerm

Bloomberg Supports Parking Lot for Big Box Store?

Joshua Liberles — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0000

New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg, famous for his attempts to decrease car traffic in Manhattan, has endorsed construction of a new Costco retail store along with its 2,300 parking spaces.

From the NY Sun:

At a press conference yesterday, Mr. Bloomberg said bringing the big-box warehouse chain to the city would help New Yorkers weather a difficult economic downturn. "Costco has a reputation of selling in bulk at very low prices, and given the economy today and the public’s desire to buy things in bulk and buy them cheaper, it seems to me we should welcome any store that wants to come here," he said.

Bloomberg has garnered several Carectomy headlines in the past for his support of public transportation, congestion pricing proposals, bike-friendly intiatives, et al. New York is a place where owning a car is decidedly impractical. And besides, how many people in Manhattan even have the storage room to buy anything in bulk!?

"It is incongruous for the mayor, who supported congestion pricing, to support one of the most auto-dependent retailers in the country," said Richard Lipsky, spokesman for the Neighborhood Retail Alliance.

Via Streetsblog.

Photo via flickr by davidgalestudios

Car vs Bike Tensions Heat Up

Joshua Liberles — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0000

Dan Cooley of Louisville, KY lost fifteen pounds in four months – and saved cash and a bit of the environment along the way. Cooley, like many, was fed up with rising gas prices and temperatures and turned to bicycle commuting.

But on the morning July 25^th, Cooley fell victim to a malicious act of road rage while pedaling to work. After the driver of a Volkswagen almost ran him over, the car pulled to the side, and the passenger jumped out and began to beat Cooley before speeding away. Cooley was left with a concussion and torn ligament.

Cooley’s incident isn’t unique. In fact, as the NY Times reports, car-on-bike violence is on the rise nationwide. What isn’t clear is whether the spike is in proportion to the dramatic increase in cyclists. Previous studies have actually shown that cycling becomes significantly safer when there are more riders on the road.

Motorists currently face an unmanageable expense added onto their gridlock commutes. A surge in two-wheelers leaving them in the dust must just add to their seething fury. Some cyclists may not be blameless – they never learn how to ride as an adult and revert to their childhood experiences of cutting corners, riding on sidewalks or against traffic, or even blowing through traffic lights and stop signs.

As cycling continues to become more prevalent, voters demand more infrastructure to support their commutes, and the police and judicial system enforce cyclists’ rights, conditions will improve. In the meantime, keep your head up, obey traffic laws, and take pity on your steel-encased, stressed-out brethren.

Northampton Awaits “Death of the Combustion Engine”

Joshua Liberles — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0000

Although the auto’s funeral may be premature, Jill Turner is doing her part to help usher it along. Turner is organizing the “Death of the Combustion Engine: A bicycle and hoola hoop procession performance” in Northampton, Massachusetts.

The event, slated for Northampton Arts Night Out on Friday, September 12^h, will feature a parade-style march/roll through NoHo with participants decked out in “outrageous black funeral costumes” all accompanied by the Ode to Global Warming. Certified bike safety instructor Ralph Sturgen will be on hand to offer urban riding lessons for efficiently navigating city streets. Expect dancers, hoola-hooping, martial artists, yogis, and various two-wheeled contraptions!

If you’re interested in participating, contact Jill Turner directly for more info.

Photo via flickr by Ben Cooper

Biking in Tandem Saves a Marriage

Joshua Liberles — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0000

The simple machine known as the bicycle remains the most efficient form of transportation on the planet. Although people may congregate into groups and ride together in makeshift pelotons, there is something inherently individual about biking. Riders rely on their own power for propulsion and are rewarded with independence, freedom, and all the sights, sounds, and smells of their surroundings that they miss when encased in their cars.

Sometimes you want to share your cycling experience with a friend or loved one – not always an easy task. Different levels of fitness or comfort with speed can quickly turn a for-fun excursion into a bickering hell – especially when married partners are involved.

Jennifer Schwartz recently wrote about her parents’ experience for the Boston Globe magazine. After failed attempts at riding together, they found a solution to this age-old problem: The tandem bicycle. The bicycle-built-for-two ensures that the two riders remain together, for better or worse.

From the Globe:

I joined them on my bike for one of their first tandem rides. At stoplights, they were horrendous: He’d lean to one side, she to the other. He’d stand up to stretch without warning; she’d buckle her knees. They’d clip out opposite feet and knock themselves off balance. Yelling and frustration (and eye rolling on my part) ensued. But soon, sharing a cadence, communicating the next move, and working as a single entity turned them into a machine that could beat me in any sprint. They assigned tasks (she’d signal, he’d steer), learned bike jargon ("Car back!"), and developed a method, however boilerplate, to take off when a light turned green ("One, two, three, go!").

It is no exaggeration that in the four years since the purchase of that bike, my parents’ life has changed. They finally share an equally enjoyed hobby. My mom is in better shape, and my dad is less competitive. They have a whole new set of "tandem friends" with whom they ride and go out to dinner. In September, they’ll take the tandem to Italy. I rarely see my parents happier than when they’re on that bike. The jabs and jokes are still around, but now the effect is far more endearing.

Photo via flick by sfbike

Putting Cars to Good Use: Furniture

Joshua Liberles — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0000

Surging gas prices have helped to push our tastes away from the auto. Dealers have stopped taking SUVs as trade-ins as their resale values plummet to next-to-nil and other inefficient cars are finding their way to the junkyard quickly.

So, what to do with all of the hunks of undesired metal accumulating on our landscape? Nine Stories has an idea: build furniture with cars’ metal sheets.

From the Nine Stories website: "Each roof and panel is chosen for its unique character, and carefully removed from the unused substructure in such a way as to preserve the original factory finish. Over 70% of each piece in the series is made up of this otherwise wasted material, so it is both for the obvious environmental benefits as well as for aesthetic reasons, that we find the process of "reclaiming" at the center of this new body of work."

Check out a cool slide show from Nine Stories by clicking the image below:

Via Treehugger.

Scooters Up, Ford Down

Joshua Liberles — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0000

In a telling confluence of events, the Boston Globe recently reported on Ford’s all-time worst financial quarter while just a few newspaper pages away, a Rhode Island electric scooter company celebrated a tenfold expansion in its business.

The common ingredient, of course, is high gas prices. Ford’s truck- and SUV-heavy American operations are scrambling to take cues from its more fuel-efficient European lineup. The company lost $8.7 billion in this past financial quarter. The effort to refocus on less-guzzling cars may come too late – U.S. plants won’t be set up to crank out these new car models until 2010.

Meanwhile, Vectrix Corp. of Middletown, R.I. has exploded from 5 to 50 nationwide dealers in the past 100 days. Their Vectrix electric scooter gets the equivalent of 357 miles per gallon, has a 30 to 55 mile range per charge, and fully charges in 2 to 3 hours. The company estimates an operating cost of 1 cent per mile – which I assume only considers electricity expenses.

With a top-speed of about 62 miles per hour and its highway certification, the Vectrix looks to be a viable commute alternative. The $8,795 price tag is pretty steep but, as technology improves, battery capacities increase, prices drop, and recharging stations emerge, ultra-efficient electric vehicles such as these will give Big Auto a serious run for its money.

Photo via flickr by MBK (Marjie)

The Simple Economics of Oil

Hank Green — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0000

Ya see? It’s as simple as that! Check out the awesome original comic, posted here.

Via Streetsblog.

Portland MAX Trains: Inspired by a Simple Hook

Riding Along Together: Carpooling

Joshua Liberles — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0000

Americans are freaking out over gas prices and the country’s transportation choices are undergoing real change for the first time in decades. Miles driven and car sales have waned while mass transit ridership and cycling have soared. But, as a recent Boston Globe article laments, carpooling still hasn’t seem the same spike.

Good for the environment, the pocketbook, and perhaps even the social life, car pooling would seem, at this particular moment in history, to have a lot going for it. Environmentalists and traffic planners say it’s one of the easiest and cheapest ways for cities to decrease pollution and congestion - never mind helping individuals reduce transportation expenses, which as of 2006 consumed approximately 15 percent of the average American budget (12 percent for those in the Northeast), according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. And unlike public transit, a car pool requires little in the way of costly taxpayer-funded infrastructure or maintenance.

But Americans don’t carpool much. In fact, over the past quarter century, despite increased traffic, fuel costs, and growing awareness of environmental issues, we’ve been doing it less and less. According to the federal Department of Transportation, the number of solo drivers on US roads nearly tripled between 1960 and 2000. In 1980, when the US Census began tracking car pooling, almost 20 percent of American workers shared rides to work. By 1990, the number had fallen to 13 percent. In 2006 - the newest data available - it was down to about 11 percent.

$4 gas is changing the carpooling landscape, with local Massachusetts coordinators like Mass-RIDES fielding increased interest. However, carpooling has two main knocks against it: Nobody makes money and it’s not autonomous/sexy.

These two issues are interrelated. Car manufacturers inevitably boost the “freedoms” that their vehicles supply: “Find Your Own Road”; “Grab Life by the Horns”; “Drivers Wanted”, ad nauseum. Sharing a ride, and one’s personal space, with others is at odds with the multi-million dollar images we’re bombarded with.

Which leads to problem two – nobody makes any money when you share a ride. Increased mass transit brings fat contracts to add more infrastructure, train and subway cars, jobs, etc. Lobbyists, manufacturers, and politicians can easily get behind these initiatives. The most appealing part about ride-sharing is that none of this is required; we have everything we need already in place.

If traffic, gas prices, and concern for the environment aren’t sufficient to affect change, perhaps congestion pricing, market-rate parking costs, and business incentives will further re-route the flow of traffic.

From the Globe:

Singapore began charging fees to enter its downtown in 1975. According to data collected by the Environmental Defense Fund, the city has seen a 45 percent decrease in traffic and a 20 percent increase in the use of public transportation since then. More recently, Stockholm and London adopted similar schemes to encourage both transit use and ride sharing. The Environmental Defense Fund estimates that London traffic moves 37 percent faster and uses 20 percent less fuel than it did before the fees began in 2003. And in Stockholm, where a pricing plan went into effect in 2006, traffic is moving 15 percent faster.

Photo via flickr by Mr. T in DC

The End of the S.U.V. Era

Joshua Liberles — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0000

Money is slipping like Saudi sand through the greedy fingers of automakers. It’s safe to say their heyday is over, with gas prices weaning the drivers off of fat-tire guzzlers and turning them on to more efficient modes of transport.

General Motors, maker of many a bone-crushing S.U.V., is in bad shape after losing $15.5 Billion in one quarter. The company reported the loss last week, noting America’s shift to smaller, more fuel-efficient cars.

The company has plans to scale back production, especially on its worst offenders. Here’s the word from the NYT:

In June, G.M.’s chairman, Rick Wagoner, said the company would close four assembly plants making pickups and S.U.V.’s by 2010 and slash 500,000 units of vehicle production. And in a move that symbolized the end of the S.U.V. era, Mr. Wagoner said that G.M. had begun a “strategic review” toward a likely sale of its Hummer brand. Besides cutting truck and S.U.V. production, G.M. also announced plans to add third shifts at two plants to increase the output of smaller cars.

G.M. isn’t alone in its demise. Other producers are hard-up, too. It’s not merely a spiraling economy or a temporary rough patch that’s sent automakers to the poorhouse, but (we hope), a seismic shift in consumer choices. The price of gas isn’t a singular issue; it’s spurred a revolution.

Source: The NYT; photos via flickr by heidigoseek and prawnpie