To sum up, there are many negative consequences of driving, but without a doubt, driving is beneficial for individuals. Due to cars, drivers can easily travel a long distance and have fantastic flexibility in their actions. However, I believe that the time when automobile was the instrument of freedom has past, and now it became a time-wasting, life-threatening device that many of us must have just to lives. As a matter of fact, from 1970 to 2010 we have double the number of roads in the country, nevertheless if in 1970 a typical American spent one-tenth of their income to transportation then in 2010 the same American spent one-fifth of his/her income on transportation, which is slightly higher than housing expense for a working class citizens. Thus, I want to shift the focus to solutions of the transportation problem and discuss what alternatives we can use to make a commute more sustainable.
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Of course, people can’t walk as far as they can drive and that is exactly why a shift to a walking culture needs to happen on a city level first. There is a phenomenon that calls “drive until you qualify,” which is basically an idea that people would drive further and further from city center until they find a big house that they can afford. We forced to move away from the cities and drive more because of the idea of suburban sprawl. A popular American city planner and urban designer, Jeff Speck talks about this notion and about the ways to change it in his book Walkable City. In fact, each city in the U.S. has a walkable score that is measured by (Walk Score) analyzes of walking routes to nearby amenities, pedestrian friendliness by analyzing population density and road metrics such as block length and intersection density. As a consequence, higher walkable score leads to less driving and a higher likelihood of buying a house closer to the city
Of course, people can’t walk as far as they can drive and that is exactly why a shift to a walking culture needs to happen on a city level first. There is a phenomenon that calls “drive until you qualify,” which is basically an idea that people would drive further and further from city center until they find a big house that they can afford. We forced to move away from the cities and drive more because of the idea of suburban sprawl. A popular American city planner and urban designer, Jeff Speck talks about this notion and about the ways to change it in his book Walkable City. In fact, each city in the U.S. has a walkable score that is measured by (Walk Score) analyzes of walking routes to nearby amenities, pedestrian friendliness by analyzing population density and road metrics such as block length and intersection density. As a consequence, higher walkable score leads to less driving and a higher likelihood of buying a house closer to the city