More driving, less walking

Will Fleishell alerts us to the latest report from the Transportation Research Board, Commuting in America III, which is also written up by USA Today, "Study sees longer rides to work, more commuting by older women." From the article:

The percentage of Americans who walk to work dropped from 5.6% in 1980 to 3.9% in 1990 and 2.9% in 2000.

Walking has "been replaced by transit, been replaced by the automobile," Pisarski says. "If you think of the number of jobs one can get to walking, no matter where you live, it's very limited. But if you add a 10-minute commute time, you multiply many times over the number of jobs available."

This comes down to shifting paradigms. As long as most people think in terms of automobility, as and as long as regional deconcentration occurs, particularly with the development of "exurbs," driving will increase, and so, logically, will commuting distances.

But there are ways to think about getting around beyond the car. Yesterday I talked for quite a bit with a motorcyclist. He lives in New Jersey, and hasn't owned a car since 1990. He commutes by motorcycle. (Of course, the big problem with motorcycling is drivers of cars, who tend to be less conscious of any vehicle that isn't a car or truck. I believe that a majority of motorcycle accidents are caused by drivers of automobiles.)

And I love these photos from Vietnam by Steve Heck. I've been meaning to put a couple up for awhile. The photos are also courtesy of Will...





There are maybe 6-8 more of these photos in my Flickr account.

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