Kill the car

July 7, 2011

The world’s longest car bridge was openend July 1st. It flys out of sight over the ocean, connecting downtown Qingdao to the Huangdao city centre. The bridge is over 26 miles long, 8 lanes wide, and saves Chinese drivers about 20 minutes. There is no light-rail component. Does it have bicycle lanes? Will anyone use it 20 years from now?

See the bridge here: http://www.channel4.com/news/is-chinas-bridge-really-the-longest-in-the-…

It is a mark of our deep insanity that politicians keep promising and building more roads, highways, freeways, and bridges for the last days of the private car, the last decade or two of oil.

We don’t need to search Google to know this is happening all around North Amerca, and even more in China. Politicians are nervous about the bad economy, and long-lasting unemployment, especially among the young. Lacking any imagination, without good information on Peak Oil or climate change, these leaders of yester-year plunge 80 years backwards in time for solutions. They try to recreate the Great Depression jobs schemes. They imagine that economy was restored because of road-building, when really it was by War. They don’t believe jobs from a green economy.

This program lets you hear a fine speech on the true cost of car culture. Yves Engler launched his book June 27th in Vancouver. The title: “Stop Signs: Cars and Capitalism on the Road to Economic, Social and Ecological Decay”. The African co-author is Bianca Mugyenyi. Find out more at http://yvesengler.com/

The two tried a road trip by public transit through the wild suburbs of America. It was savage territory for the car-less in Fort Lauderdale and the suburbs of Houston – but Yves will tell you all about that, and about your own life, in this recording for Radio Ecoshock.

Yves is introduced by Vancouver City Councilman David Cadman.

At the end of the speech, I toss in my question to the panel of Engler, Vancouver City Councillor David Cadman, and stopthepave.org’s Carmen Mills. Why do people get angry when we tell them the truth about cars? And watch out for the “revenge of the suburbs” as gas prices soar!

Yves Engler says car culture isn’t working. Maybe we should kill it, before it kills us. With pollution, climate change, mass death and injuries from accidents. Not to mention the massive corporations behind cars, construction, oil, and the military that protects it all.

Alex Smith
Radio Ecoshock http://www.ecoshock.org

Alex Smith

Host of syndicated weekly Radio Ecoshock Show - the cutting edge with top scientists, authors and activists. Eighth year on the air as of 2014. Previously a researcher for global environment group, print journalist, homesteader, world-traveler, and private investigator.

Tags: Fossil Fuels, Oil, Transportation