To despair at our obession with cars

[SelkieQualia]

They are awful. Noisy. Polluting. 4 million people die every year from the effects of air pollution. Housing developments are built around them, which means that the most vulnerable people in our society - young people, the elderly - are made even more dependant on those who drive.
Why do we tolerate such terrible public transport and cycling infrastructure?

Not everyone is happier around other people. Many of us experience great distress in groups or crowds. We thrive on solitude. Not everyone is NT. Being on public transit or in a crowd I can’t exit is dangerous for someone like me with an airborne fragrance allergy because there are people who still think using scented products doesn’t violate the social contract.

Herbaceous, people also hire cars to go to remote places

Onlyfoolsnmothers, this was the source
www.nimblefins.co.uk/cheap-car-insurance/average-cost-run-car-uk#:~:text=What's%20the%20Average%20Cost%20of,(%C2%A3273%20a%20year).

Even if the entire of the UK had the best public transport in the world, many, many people would still insist on using their cars.

Many see cars as a status symbol - from the first boy racer (you can't neck your girlfriend or smoke weed in the back of a bus) to the mid life crisis sports car.

We have family in other parts of the UK who sneer at our use of buses - apparently they 'wouldn't be seen dead on them' and they're 'only for old people and children'.

Because my hospital is 45-50 minutes away, with a bus route with only two buses that run on a Wednesday (I believe, I drive so unsure if this is still correct but I know it’s sparse still) and I’m 9 months pregnant.

Do you expect me to cycle to the hospital when I go into labour?

Driving is great for us but I would certainly cut back if we lived in a city or larger town where I’m able to walk to cycle to get to basically amenities.

Why do we tolerate such terrible public transport and cycling infrastructure?

The expectation is everyone drives.

We don't, IL don't and never have in their 70s now, sibling who works as a carer doesn't - you tell people this and they'll still give you car directions as it's their default, they'll do times like you're driving and get irked when you can't meet them. There will occaionally be an issue that you can't get to a location at all either solved by taxi or by not doing event but you'll probably be met with skepticism that it's not possible to get there or there at time wanted and frequently told the solution is to be driving.

But everyone thinks in terms of driving - it's the default the expectation and has been for decades- you see it all the time on MN.

Problem is I don't see this changing without viable reliable afforable alternatives - and they're frequently not there which reinforces expectation everyone drives - thus there's no real poltical incentive to priotise improved public transport services - (given that I think the UK
cities that brought trams back have been very forward thinking.)

It's ingrained the expecation - maybe higher driving costs will change this - but I've seen over crowded train routes for decades with no improvements such as bigger or more frequent trains so I doubt it.

So it's tolerated because large swaths of the population can opt out by driving so don't use servces so live in blissful ignorance how bad the system is or regination the alternatives aren't but they do drive so they cope. When drivers do venture onto public transport or try biking the experinces can be so dire they go back to driving thankful they can drive and avoid the dire alternatives.

Why are we so obsessed with keeping ourselves away from other people? Building big fences round our houses and locking ourselves away in polluting metal boxes and seeing that as a sign of comfort and luxury? When did we forget that we are social creatures and that the more we move around, mix and interact with other people (like us a different from us) the healthier and happier we are?
For me on public transport it started around the era of the Walkman, but has continued with ipods, smartphones and Bluetooth speakers.

Do you expect me to cycle to the hospital when I go into labour?

I got a taxi and then had couple of home births - though did get lift back after pfb from friend which I was greatful for as DH had thought we'd be fine on the bus - despite me having given birth night before and had no sleep due to dire pnd ward. TBF the bus route did stop next door to our then house and it was just outside the hopsital entrance but even so it felt very daunting.

I did find DH being in hopsital in next city to were we lived an issue - transport out of town site wasn't great - it was bus, train bus and the times didn't tit well and they were very restictive visiting hours - it didn't look like anyone had thought about it and no shelters. New hospital here had issues as apparently they thought of buses and even taxi very late expecting everyone to come in an ambulance or be driving.

"When did we forget that we are social creatures and that the more we move around, mix and interact with other people (like us a different from us) the healthier and happier we are?"

You might say that but I don't think you would want ds next to you on a bus.

@nordica I drive short distances because I don’t always have the time to walk. The weather is also permanently shit where I am, apart from the odd day, it’s nearly always cold/windy/raining or a combination of. I can easily walk to my local Lidl, but cannot carry anything more than a loaf and some tea bags due to an injury so I use my car.

I actually don’t like driving and when I lived in the south east for a few years I never bothered about having a car. I now live in the NW and work shifts about 25 miles away, there are very few jobs locally, there is no way for me to get to work on the early shift, or get home from the late shift without driving. I have one option coming home, but that would still require DH to collect me from a station about 8 miles away as there isn’t a way to get home from there.

We actually manage without a car and live in a very rural area. It is actually possible!

We live in a tiny little town but it has a supermarket, doctors, leisure centre and both primary and high schools. Work is an 8 minute walk for me. Public transport isn't great at all but there's an hourly bus to the nearest proper town(18 miles away) for shopping/hospital and a 2 hourly train service for when we need/want to go elsewhere.

DH and I have used buses in England for short trips into the city center. The price is completely ridiculous. It costs far more than driving, which is just stressful and parking is limited.

We are happy to take the bus but if we lived full time there it would be too expensive.

I live rurally and up until recently only used my car around once every three weeks. However, my mother’s health has taken a turn for the worse and I must admit the thought of trying to get to her in a hurry on public transport (it would take half a day instead of an hour) doesn’t appeal.

Well I was a late driver I had to rely on public transport untill I was 38

The amount of times I've been let down, left abandoned at night by buses that never turned up or horrendously late, same with train's and lifts never working on and on. Hence I absolutely love love love my car!
Love it.

We actually manage without a car and live in a very rural area. It is actually possible!

For some people, I guess. Depends on your work and family situation.

@SleeplessInEngland

On the plus side, the uptake of electric cars has surpassed all expectations and they're much quieter and cleaner.

Not great for the environment still though, lithium mining, production of electricity in this country still relies on fossil fuels primarily...

Iamsoreadyforbednow, how do you think women without cars get to hospital to have babies?

@Momicrone .. how? When they live in the middle of sticks?

I'm still not sure what the solution is for those of us who work more than 10 miles away from where we live. Most people saying that public transport is doable seem, on here, not to live too far away from their jobs. I'm guessing those of us who work further afield took those jobs by factoring in how long it would take by car.

I teach. Using public transport would give me the option of 3 schools. That is, provided those schools were even looking for a head of department. Some jobs are easier to find than others.

www.theguardian.com/world/2021/nov/28/ride-on-baby-nz-politician-cycles-to-hospital-to-give-birth-for-the-second-time

@iamsoreadyforbednow Other people cycle to the hospital when they go into labour, so why not? If that’s what you want to do

@ivykaty44 - it took her 10 minutes to cycle to hospital. That’s fair enough if you’re not in agonising labour.. my hospital is a 50 minute drive so that’s ‘why not’ 😂

@ivykaty44

www.theguardian.com/world/2021/nov/28/ride-on-baby-nz-politician-cycles-to-hospital-to-give-birth-for-the-second-time

@iamsoreadyforbednow Other people cycle to the hospital when they go into labour, so why not? If that’s what you want to do

It’s sheer stupidity if that’s the benchmark we should be aiming for. Women in labour cycling to hospital. What utter crap that militant environmentalism and so called activism holds this up as something to aspire to.

@TheMoth yep working in community nursing covering a large rural area I kind of need my car 😂 and that is not going to change any time soon with the push to keep people at home instead of in hospital, more and more treatments are being done at home. The nhs is unlikely to provide cars for every member of staff either, we currently have 1 between a team of 8 so whoever is doing the furthest run gets it not to mention they can’t be used for personal use, so taking DC to school
Or going to appointments etc.

I'm still not sure what the solution is for those of us who work more than 10 miles away from where we live.

Nor am I. Currently, in order to get to work by 9 using public transport, I would have to leave the day before.

There would need to be considerable improvements made.

I couldn't do my job without my car. I cover a huge area. I'd probably get to two appointments and then take 3 hours to get home again.