“The United States, with its enormous highways, sprawling suburbs & neglected public transport, is one of the most car-dependent countries in the world. But this arrangement of obligatory driving is making many Americans actively unhappy, new research has found.” www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024... - ThreadSky

brenttoderian.bsky.social • 8 days ago

“The United States, with its enormous highways, sprawling suburbs & neglected public transport, is one of the most car-dependent countries in the world. But this arrangement of obligatory driving is making many Americans actively unhappy, new research has found.”
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/dec/29/extreme-car-dependency-unhappiness-americans

Comments

pcongre.bsky.social•8 days ago

"one of the most"
I'm really curious if there are any real contenders out there?
(Perhaps one of the~smaller island-nations?🤔)

gander22h.bsky.social•7 days ago

Repo Man explains it all: https://www.slashfilm.com/1231926/repo-man-ending-explained-the-more-you-drive-the-less-intelligent-you-are/

senorsabelotodo.bsky.social•8 days ago

Not surprised.
Yet another reason why Americans are so unhappy.

My sister just moved to an awesome little town in PA from the suburbs. She said "oh my gosh it feels like I'm on vacation every day."

Because she can walk everywhere and take care of daily needs plus have a little fun. Go figure.

mikedolan.bsky.social•8 days ago

If only we had spent several years figuring out how to work from home and kept doing it...

jjbillyd.bsky.social•8 days ago

Maybe you have had the same experience in reverse, but visiting your cities from abroad takes so long to get used to. The guide says there's a 'vibrant shopping neighborhood' - we drive there, park the car... there's just one shop. The next one's a half mile away, then another in a mile, then...

jjbillyd.bsky.social•8 days ago

Obviously there are walkable cities (or at least, some cities with some walkable neighbourhoods) - but it looks like it would be the work of decades to 'fix' the rest.

heathryan16.bsky.social•8 days ago

“But this arrangement of obligatory driving is making many Americans actively unhappy, new research has found.”

I wonder if it’s also making them vote for fascist idiots?

cargobiker530.bsky.social•7 days ago

Americans are lonely because you will never meet a new friend driving anywhere by yourself. If you walk or bike you can stop anywhere along your route and chat with people.

gergyl.bsky.social•8 days ago

Perhaps 'has made', for decades?

cycling-commuter.bsky.social•8 days ago

Both public & private vehicles have their place.

In rural areas, when there's a medical emergency & every second counts, it's generally best to take a patient to the nearest hospital by private vehicle instead of waiting for the next bus. Same goes in the city. Especially at 4:00am.

cycling-commuter.bsky.social•8 days ago

When seconds count in a dire medical emergency, sometimes it's best to call an ambulance, take the patient in the direction of the ambulance by private vehicle, then transfer the patient to the ambulance & care of paramedics as soon as possible. There are multiple scenarios with multiple solutions.

rickcrawf.bsky.social•6 days ago

But?

lesleyewing.bsky.social•8 days ago

Today, b/c having to transport a heavy, bulky item, I drove my car. Soul crushing. A distance I normally do on bike in 45 min on local dedicated trails took 1.5 hrs by car (traffic congestion, etc.). & now I am unhappy. Looking at trailers now.

sv-rub-a-dub.bsky.social•8 days ago

I have a little bike cargo trailer. The only "hitch" is the hitch itself. Makes towing rather unpleasant.

velozebra.bsky.social•8 days ago

That’s why I got a box cargo bike. No fiddling with hitches.

jeremycole.bsky.social•7 days ago

Trailers are good. Cargo bikes are good. E-bikes are good. An e-cargo-bike towing a trailer is (at least) triple good.

Seen here loading grocery bags at the White Center Food Bank for my volunteer home delivery route.

sv-rub-a-dub.bsky.social•8 days ago

I also have a cargo bike. (un)Fortunately I also have a dog. Dog takes precedence but sometimes you gotta haul stuff AND dog.

velozebra.bsky.social•8 days ago

I have had my granddog in mine. It’s fine except when she decides to shift her weight!

sv-rub-a-dub.bsky.social•8 days ago

Luckily ours is only 17lbs... Light enough that you can barely tell she's there.

ba55fr33k.bsky.social•7 days ago

america has built itsself on car dependency, so now when people cannot afford both the Car and their Home, they are forced to Live in their Car

jjonesn.bsky.social•8 days ago

“And in other news; rain is wet”.

1canoe2paddles.bsky.social•7 days ago

People in the US and Canada aren't thinking about how economically uncompetitive this "only driving" transportation system is. A car is expensive to buy and maintain. The roads are equally costly. Traffic consumes time, and roads and parking take up space, and pay no property tax. It is a money pit.

summerjackel.bsky.social•8 days ago

"while having a car is better than not for overall life satisfaction, having to drive for more than 50% of the time for out-of-home activities is linked to a decrease in life satisfaction" feels about right; crucially "For many people driving isn’t a choice, so diversifying choices is important.”