[sustran] Re: The Auto and its Enemies

[Obwon]

 This post cleary certifies a 'certifiable' social/pathological view of the
auto/anti auto conflict of interests!  It is a terrible handicap to those
seeking real remedies to the lack of peaceful communities that the auto provides
while their struggles to 'comprimise' are taken and seized upon as evidence of
the impracticality of all auto use reduction proposals.

   Bikes and human powered vehicles are most useful and practical in
neighborhoods for the laarge variety of short trips that make up the average
day!  Until we somehow provide vehicles of utilty, that can carry groceries home
from the local store and allow a friend or two to join one easily on the local
rounds, they will have only a small impact.

   Here in my community, because car's are so expensive to operate, inconvienent
to park, etc., more and more local trips are being assigned to bike trips.  A
wider variety of hpv utility vehicles would probably be welcomed/embraced
quickly.  People in communities that have few cars on their streets are begining
to notice how much more peaceful and friendly bikes are when traveling their
quiet streets than are cars.  So, the psychological comparison made, I see more
people accepting bikes as an alternative means of transport if only to pereserve
the tranquility they moved to those isolated streets for.

   The better approach is not to denigrate the auto or it's use!  But let the
observer/interviewee do it themselves!  Ask simple question designed to elicite
their own real views of auto use!  Like -- "What a lovely neighborhood you live
in, why wouldn't you want a nice highway access built here, so you won't have to
drive so far to get to the highway?"  Hahaha!  Or "This is a lovely wide street,
why shouldn't we route truck delivery traffic through here, then we could keep
much of the truck traffic off congested local streets."

   These kinds of questions are likely to be met with horrified gasps of
terror!  At the root of which will be the responders real fears of the anti
tranquil auto!  Then let them ponder their own auto averse proclivities against
their auto-centric culturism.  Now you can ask the properly prepared responder
about alternatives and see what they then have to say.

   Obwon