Driverless cars were the future but now the truth is out: they’re on the road to nowhere | Christian Wolmar
www.theguardian.com
The dream of these vehicles ruling the roads remains just that. Focusing on public transport would be much smarter, says transport writer Christian Wolmar

Driverless cars were the future but now the truth is out: they’re on the road to nowhere::The dream of these vehicles ruling the roads remains just that. Focusing on public transport would be much smarter, says transport writer Christian Wolmar

  • BombOmOmEnglish
    -6•1 year ago

    You walk five minutes to the store, spend 5-10 minutes grabbing stuff, then walk back with like a single bag.

    That is an incredibly large amount of time over the week spent doing this task; literally hours per week if we are talking 5 min walk each way plus 10 min in store every day. This is much longer than condensing the 7 trips into 1 and buying in bulk. And it still doesn’t solve the having to go outside in cold and wet weather. Not to mention any grocery store this close is going to be at bodega prices, so we are talking spending more money as well.

    This isn’t a solution. This is a way to spend even more time and even more money while one has to be outside hauling stuff in the cold and wet weather.

    • @jjjalljs@ttrpg.networkEnglish
      3•1 year ago

      You don’t have to go every day. You can also take a hand cart if you really want to stock up. It’s also just much less of an ordeal to walk down the street and grab some things than it is to deal with the car, traffic, parking, gas.

      You have to go outside in the cold weather when you drive, too. Plus you’re more likely to get in an accident if it’s very rainy or icy. Not a compelling argument.

      Foot traffic is also better for the neighborhood in terms of economic and social health (see: Death & Life of Great American Cities, by Jane Jacobs).

      I live within walking distance of several large supermarkets, in addition to bodegas and smaller groceries. I don’t live in a fancy or expensive neighborhood. I don’t know why you think that there would only be expensive places near where people live.

      Also even if it was spending more money on food because you only live next to an expensive bodega, you’re ignoring the huge externalized costs of car-first culture. Pollution, pedestrian deaths, opportunity cost from lack of walking, economic loss from lack of foot traffic, safety loss from lack of foot traffic, and so on.