In honor of International Car-Free Day (September 22), here’s a few recent cartoons on the subject of transportation and urban planning.
A lot of folks, including myself would like to see cities and towns get rid of parking requirements for new building construction. The goals are to reduce traffic and increase density and the supply of affordable housing. So why not combine these goals and change building codes from requiring parking to requiring low income apartments? For every two parking spaces that used to be required, you could require builders construct one low-income apartment…
Sometimes I think we’re making progress on stuff like this. Other times, I think the Motorheads are more entrenched than ever…
For example, back in the early 1990s, our drive-thru society looked like this–
We got rid of the drive-thru theaters but now many of our big protests are on freeways or freeway overpasses because it’s the only way to reach people. Similarly, poor folks rarely panhandle on sidewalks anymore because there are fewer walkers to ask for money, especially in the Midwest. Instead, panhandlers increasingly beg at highway off-ramps or big intersections because that’s were the people are. In the last 25 years, police car chases have also become a daily television spectacle in big cities like Los Angeles and on various “reality” TV Shows …and terrorists have started using motor vehicles to kill people, taking a cue from American drivers.
When it comes to Saint Paul Mayor Melvin Carter’s proposal to convert half of Ayd Mill Road to a bicycle and pedestrian trail, I still see a few DOT contractors on social media arguing for more highway lanes.
So, if you live in Saint Paul and haven’t done it yet, e-mail your city council member and tell them that you support the mayor’s proposal for Ayd Mill Road.
…And remember…
