Gridlock’d

DO IT! Get out of the cage!

From the World Car Free Network:

World Carfree Day is an annual celebration of cities and public life, free from the noise, stress and pollution of cars. Every September 22, people from around the world get together in the streets and neighbourhoods to celebrate World Carfree Day and to remind the world that we don’t have to accept our car-dominated societies.

World Carfree Day, promoted and supported by the World Carfree Network, is intended to advance the economic, social and environmental benefits of self-propelled or mass transportation. It is meant to promote more sustainable ways of transportation and new ways of building and thinking the urbanism of our cities, allowing streets to be a living space, rather than only a transit space.

With the global economy in freefall, carmakers are facing turbulent times and people around the world are re-evaluating their relationship with the car. So now is the perfect timing to try out the alternatives, spread the carfree word, join or start a World Carfree Day in your area! It is also time to push for a new use of car factories that could be used to build public transportation, providing employment and allowing us to build a better urban environment.

Before the 10th anniversary of World Carfree Day next year, let the 2009 edition be a showcase for how our cities might look like, feel like, and sound like without cars 365 days a year!

From Carbusters:

“Cars are the largest source of pollution and environmental destruction in the world. Almost half of all petroleum is consumed by cars – a major impetus for the looming war in Iraq. Half of the toxic air pollution, a third of the smog and at least a third of all greenhouse gasses are [also] produced by cars.”

Continuing my aggregation, Mark at Planet Bike posted this on their blog:

The Top 10 Facts on Bicycling and Walking in the United States

1) Bicycling and walking make up 10% of all trips made in the U.S., but receive less than 2% of federal transportation funding.

2) Bicyclists and pedestrians account for 13% of traffic fatalities, but receive less than 1% of federal safety funding.

3) 40% of all trips in America are two miles or less, 74% of which are traveled by car.

4) Americans spend, on average, 18% of their annual income for transportation. The average annual operating cost of a bicycle is 3.75% ($308) of an average car ($8,220).

5) A small reduction in driving causes a large drop in traffic. In 2008, the number of vehicle miles traveled dropped 3%, translating to a nearly 30% reduction in peak hour congestion.

6) Transportation sources account for 70% of our nation’s oil consumption and for 30% of total U.S. GHC emissions.

7) Simply increasing bicycling and walking from 10% of trips to 13% could lead to fuel savings of around 3.8 billion gallons a year. This is equivalent to having 19 million more hybrid cars on the road.

8 ) 89% of Americans believe that transportation investments should support the goals of reducing energy use.

9) 71% of Americans report that they would like to bicycle more. 53% favor increasing federal spending on bicycle lanes and paths.

10) For the price of one mile of four-lane urban highway, around $50 million, hundreds of miles of bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure can be built, an investment that could complete an entire network of active transportation facilities for a mid-sized city.

See the original document here

Those points mean anything to you? Time to reboot people! You don’t have to drive to work/grocery/school.

Fugetaboutit! I’m done.