Myth #2: Americans love their cars
Any time a discussion is held about the need to provide a better
transit system in the United States, it is not long before someone concludes that all
attempts to do so are pointless, because Americans love their cars and will never switch
to using transit. This argument is invalid on a number of counts:
- It is true that some Americans love their cars. These
car-lovers choose to spend large amounts of time and money maintaining, cleaning,
restoring and improving their cars, and showing them to other like-minded people at
rallies. Some car-lovers may even enjoy driving to the extent that they will choose to
drive when transit would be faster, cheaper and more convenient. However, these people are
a very small percentage of the population. The majority of Americans do not love their
cars, and many I know hate their cars. For most Americans, a car is a necessity,
much like a job or a telephone.
- There was no "car-loving" gene injected into immigrants
at Ellis Island. Americans are not biologically different from their ancestors who lived
in Europe, Africa, Asia or Latin America, where car use is significantly lower than in
America. Cars are a part of popular culture all over the globe, the difference is most
other countries have balanced transportation systems whereas America does not.
I have a friend in England who is a car lover. He owns an old
sports car which he spends his spare time fixing up, and takes it out for drives in the
country when the weather is nice enough to put the hood down. He also takes the bus to
work, walks to the grocery store, and makes most out-of-town trips by train.
