Cars 5: Beyond Thunderdome
Sometimes I like to wonder what the world would be like if cars weren't so prevalent. It's been my understanding that early in the 20th century, US transportation seemed to be leaning heavily into trolleys and the like before tire and oil companies came on the scene and said, "Hey, we're having a good time selling parts to a few people for their automobiles, but what if EVERYONE had one and had to come to us to keep them running?" and proceeded to pimp the hell out of cars until everyone in America wanted one and they became integral to the nation's infrastructure.
Then it was determined that the fumes produced by cars may not be the best thing to be pumping into the air that everyone has to breathe, but by that point they were too ingrained in society and everyone was like, "Well sure, but what am I supposed to NOT have a car? Then how would I get anywhere?" And they're not wrong; public transportation is pretty garbage anywhere west of the Mississippi, so I'm told. Hybrid and electric cars seem like a good step on paper, but they're often too expensive to buy and maintain to be a viable option for most people.
So what's the answer? Well as far as I can tell, nobody really knows for sure, and the easiest option at the moment seems to be for everyone to just die. And really, that might not be the worst as far as the planet as a whole is concerned.
That's why I can't help but be curious what things might be like if we had gone the other way. I can only assume busses and trains would be better than they are currently in every conceivable way, since they'd likely receive a lot more attention and funding if they're the only way most people can get anywhere. Trains are much easier to power in an ecological manner since they can be in constant contact with an external power source, so they would probably be easier to shift to a green energy source without negatively impacting their consumers. Public transit will probably never be as convenient as ubiquitous personal automobiles, but I don't think that has to be a bad thing; home garages wouldn't be nearly as necessary, cutting down on the amount of space homes need to occupy, and while you wouldn't be able to park directly in front of your destination, I can only assume there would be tracks laid pretty close and that little extra walk could easily be considered a benefit for most people, even if they wouldn't like to think so as they are now.
Maybe I'm oversimplifying things, maybe it wouldn't be so easy and maybe cars really have been the best solution. But there's no way to know for sure, and if nothing else, it's interesting to think about.
Take it easy!
Then it was determined that the fumes produced by cars may not be the best thing to be pumping into the air that everyone has to breathe, but by that point they were too ingrained in society and everyone was like, "Well sure, but what am I supposed to NOT have a car? Then how would I get anywhere?" And they're not wrong; public transportation is pretty garbage anywhere west of the Mississippi, so I'm told. Hybrid and electric cars seem like a good step on paper, but they're often too expensive to buy and maintain to be a viable option for most people.
So what's the answer? Well as far as I can tell, nobody really knows for sure, and the easiest option at the moment seems to be for everyone to just die. And really, that might not be the worst as far as the planet as a whole is concerned.
That's why I can't help but be curious what things might be like if we had gone the other way. I can only assume busses and trains would be better than they are currently in every conceivable way, since they'd likely receive a lot more attention and funding if they're the only way most people can get anywhere. Trains are much easier to power in an ecological manner since they can be in constant contact with an external power source, so they would probably be easier to shift to a green energy source without negatively impacting their consumers. Public transit will probably never be as convenient as ubiquitous personal automobiles, but I don't think that has to be a bad thing; home garages wouldn't be nearly as necessary, cutting down on the amount of space homes need to occupy, and while you wouldn't be able to park directly in front of your destination, I can only assume there would be tracks laid pretty close and that little extra walk could easily be considered a benefit for most people, even if they wouldn't like to think so as they are now.
Maybe I'm oversimplifying things, maybe it wouldn't be so easy and maybe cars really have been the best solution. But there's no way to know for sure, and if nothing else, it's interesting to think about.
Take it easy!
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