this post was submitted on 25 Aug 2024
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Fuck Cars

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A place to discuss problems of car centric infrastructure or how it hurts us all. Let's explore the bad world of Cars!

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"Giving people more viable alternatives to driving means more people will choose not to drive, so there will be fewer cars on the road, reducing traffic for drivers."

Concise, easy to understand, and accurate. I have used it at least a dozen times and it is remarkable how well it works.

Also—

"A bus is about twice as long as a car so it only needs to have four to six passengers on board to be more efficient than two cars."

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[–] [email protected] 32 points 2 months ago (6 children)

I've found that a lot of people see the use of public transport as horrors beyond comprehension, and think cycling would kill them instantly.

[–] [email protected] 25 points 2 months ago

But that's fine, no need to convince them to use mass transit.

The approach is to improve infrastructure - good buses, frequent routes, dedicated bus lanes, trains to feed from the suburbs, subway, etc.

Make it more convenient to use, and people will start using it. But you need to stop designing everything around cars, like every single store can't be a cube in the middle of a huge parking lot...

[–] [email protected] 8 points 2 months ago (1 children)

You might meet immigrants and poor people there. THE HORROR!!!!

[–] [email protected] 6 points 2 months ago (3 children)

People get weirdly anti social about public transit. Like, "I don't want to have to be around other people!!"

Sometimes it's racism. Sometimes it's just... anti social.

Personally I think anti-social people can go leave society, and the rest of us can build a better, more cooperative world.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

Personally I think anti-social people can go leave society, and the rest of us can build a better, more cooperative world.

Ah yes... put all the anti-social people into their own society. I'll call it a "suburb". We won't regret making car dependent suburbs.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 months ago

No need to call people who are not overly extrovert "anti-social".

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (1 children)

Tell me you've never been assaulted by a drunk guy on a train without telling me you've never been assaulted by a drunk guy on a train.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 2 months ago (1 children)

I've taken trains daily in the NYC area (not counting the pandemic) for almost 30 years. So, no, your cliché is wrong.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 months ago

Good for you. I was assaulted on a train from London to Manchester before I learnt how to drive.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 months ago

I would bet a lot of that is unfamiliarity. “I don’t know where the route is or how to get to the bus or what the schedule is or how long I have to wait or whether I’ll be able to get home at a reasonable time or how I can pay. “

Some of this is part of infrastructure. Yes, in the US buses are unpredictable, always seem delayed, and it’s tough to figure out where they go. Yes there aren’t very many and service can end early, and schedules tend not to be posted. Sometimes the payment system is one that rare riders won’t be familiar with.

At least some of the time subways are a “more acceptable” form of transit and I believe it’s the predictability, better signage, you can spend time figuring out the fare machine without being on the spot for delaying the transit. Subways even have the reputation of running more frequently than buses. These are all things bus transit could have too

For me, even being familiar with transit near me, it was much easier when I rode often enough to get a monthly pass rather than deal with fare paying

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 months ago

I’ve found that a lot of people see the use of public transport as horrors beyond comprehension,

Depending on where you are, this can be just an accurate observation.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 months ago

That seems to be highly dependent on where they are.

In some cities, everyone on public transport behaves themselves. They're clean and there's no fear that they'll be harassed or assaulted. Some people really like that and get afraid or skeeved when they think about some public transport systems.

In other cities public transportation riders are expected to "live and let live". Officials won't stop you from doing anything unless it presents an imminent danger. Some people love the freedom from that sort of system and hate the idea of someone forcing them to behave a certain way.

There are, of course, many reasons why certain public transport systems are more like one than the other; money, age, geography, preferences, etc. While there are great arguments for public transportation and I'm a huge fan of improving the infrastructure around it, I can also recognize that a lot of people's actual experience of public transport doesn't paint it in a good light.