this post was submitted on 07 Feb 2025
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Fuck Cars
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Patience. Do you really want to read everything neatly digested and miss the pleasure of arguing in comments 🙂
My main argument is that being able to buy a car without too much hassle will make it less likely to actually do so, as long as public transportation can cover most of your needs. Just knowing that you can will give you enough peace of mind not to actually do it. Because you can.
Note: I’m making a point about car ownership, not making it convenient to drive in a city. Driving the car should be discouraged through urbanist policy and design.
I know you’re approaching this argument from a good place, and I understand it. I live in China, where people in previous generations couldn’t afford one, but the younger wealthier generation can so they go out and do that.
There’s a flaw in your argument, though, in thinking that if everyone can easily afford to get a car, but public transportation is so good… they just won’t get a car when they can easily choose to do so? It goes against human nature, if people can afford to do it, they will.
Not everyone, not people like me who can afford to, but choose not to, but I think we’re the exception to human nature. And even if it’s just a 50/50 human nature thing of people that will choose to buy a car who can afford to - as the more people that can afford to rises, so will the number of cars sold.
Here in China they know this, and they don’t want the roads and air clogged, so they artificially make cars more and more expensive by charging like $12k just for a license late and doling them by lottery, to keep the numbers down.
I don't really disagree, it works with tobacco, so there's merit to the approach. I'm also hesitant to put the emphasis on overt pressure, nobody likes paying more taxes and it's easy to undo.