Sunday thoughts
a quickie on car centric cities
Despite the invention of the automobile as a monumental stride to achieving movement which is freer, faster, and more ‘accessible’, the consequences of this freedom have became a catalyst for the cultural and societal trajectories causing cities and communities to be simultaneously more connected but also more disconnected. We can go anywhere at anytime with a car. But what is lost in the speedy journey towards activities and moments of work, play, and life? I would hint that perhaps we are more removed from each-other, to other places, and to the world around us as a result. Since cars are steeped in individualism, they hardly allow for meaningful interactions with our daily environment like other communal or active forms of transportation. They also serve to further alienate us from efforts to building intentional community and more harmonious relationships that exist in the moments missed.
Now let me pause here for a second. I know a world without cars is frankly impossible, and I’m not even saying that I fully hate cars. I have used a car, benefited from a car, and see tons of value in a car (for some aspects in life that is). What I do hate is the emphasis and over-reliance on cars which leaves other forms of transit without investment or sufficient resources. The kinds of transportation that are better for our health and wellbeing, both mentally and physically! These are also more sustainable and create habits that are simpler and less consumerist. A win-win.
In the majority of North American cities alternative transportation is not only undervalued, but it is hardly a central part of the lives of most people. The inconsistency, inefficiency, and inconvenience of alternative transportation doesn’t make it a more desirable means of mobility. For example, when a commute that would take 10 minutes with a car is over an hour with the bus, who would opt for the bus? In the same breath, if walking to work meant crossing a sprawling highway or dangerous intersection, I don’t blame anyone for feeling rather uncomfortable to travel this way. Not to mention, the lack of motivation to bike in an area clearly never meant for bikes.
I’ll admit some of the inspiration for writing this came after a recent return to Kelowna (the city I currently reside in). Let me paint the picture if you have never been here: Kelowna is heavily trapped by the perils of car centric planning, and one which truly frustrates me like no other. To get anywhere with any degree of logic or ease you really need to have a car. The stretch of bike lanes and walkways (many of which cut off unexpectedly or are just not respected by cars) are segregated to the touristy or more commercial sections of the inner city. If you own a car, and have owned a car for most of your adult life I get why you may see things differently. In fact, I would be rather surprised if you get it at all. Especially if all you’ve ever known is highways, sprawl, strip malls, and parking lots, a reality totally opposite may seem almost fictional.
What is ‘wrong’ with Kelowna and other places like it is much deeper, and more systemic, and is certainly not unique. It’s a symptom of a much larger issue. Car centric planning in our cities suck!
Why is it that we idealize cities where we can walk everywhere, or choose destinations for vacation and sightseeing in places that are centered around functional transportation? The ability to step outside and have everything you could possibly need or want within a short walk, bike, scooter, or tube ride away is more than just convenient, it’s more enjoyable. Simple as that. There is also an element which is deeply human. You are forced to see people, make conversation, touch surfaces, smell the air, and be engaged whether passively or actively in something bigger than ourselves. This huge. Like really huge.
