Recent Streetsblog USA posts about Car Dependence

Maps Show Striking Link Between Car Commuting and Obesity

By Angie Schmitt | Jan 17, 2012 | 20 Comments

Check out these two maps, the first showing obesity rates (by county) in the United States and the second showing the percentage of commuters who travel by car (via Planetizen). Researchers Anne Price and Ariel Godwin at Planetizen caution readers not to conflate correlation and causation. However, when comparing other economic and demographic characteristics (unemployment, […]

Trapped By Car Dependence: Stories From Commute-Battered Americans

By Angie Schmitt | Oct 31, 2011 | 44 Comments

Meet Darren Flenoy, a Bay Area security guard who lives 40 miles from work. Gas costs him about $500 a month. His car payment is another $500. On top of that, he spends $80 per month on insurance and $180 on tolls. In total, Darren’s commute costs him half of his monthly income. He must […]

Time to See Older Drivers Through Dry Eyes

By Anne Lutz Fernandez | Oct 24, 2011 | 29 Comments

“Have you cried at your desk at work yet today? Would you like to?” Time Magazine recently asked, inviting its readers to indulge in emotion on behalf of an Iowa couple whose story went viral last week. Gordon and Norma Yeager died as the result of a car crash, the same way about 630 Americans […]

Exxon: ‘One Mega-Highway, Please.’ Texas: ‘Coming Right Up’

By Angie Schmitt | Sep 13, 2011 | 10 Comments

It’s generally difficult to determine exactly how and to what extent the shadowy hand of Big Oil is at work in our publicly funded infrastructure decisions. Some of the more notable exceptions over the past few years have included the Koch Brothers-Scott Walker Wisconsin roads bonanza. Or the attempted assassination of the Cincinnati Streetcar by […]

Has America Passed Peak Car Use, or Is It Just a Cyclical Decline?

By Angie Schmitt | Jul 8, 2011 | 6 Comments

Fast Company is the latest media outlet to trumpet the decline of driving, with a look at the phenomenon dubbed “peak car use.” In an article titled “We Are Approaching Peak Car Use,” the magazine examines an Australian study [PDF] which found driving rates are falling in a number of cities in Europe, North America […]

How Gas-Dependent Is Your State?

By Angie Schmitt | May 26, 2011 | 2 Comments

It’s no secret that higher gas prices are hitting American pocketbooks hard. To a remarkable extent, however, exactly how much pain Americans are experiencing is a function of where they live. A report released today by the Natural Resources Defense Council details how geography impacts our vulnerability to gas price fluctuation. Fuel pump pressure is […]

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