Depending on a car could be impacting your life satisfaction | ASU News
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A viral research study led by Rababe Saadaoui, a PhD planning student in Arizona State University's School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning, has uncovered a link between car dependency and life satisfaction in the United States.
  • dejected_warp_core@lemmy.worldEnglish
    7·
    2 days ago

    So, I want to be more productive in this thread than the typical orange-pilled response. That is, “fix the zoning, housing is in all the wrong places, stroads are awful, hostile architecture everywhere…” and so on. Problem is: I know more about running from these problems and zero about fixing them with my own two hands.

    So, I have questions.

    What resources should we be sharing to help address this? How do we take local zoning laws head-on to get more practical mixed-use and pedestrian-friendly options going? What does it actually take to get safe bike infrastructure in place?

    • Triumph@fedia.io
      5·
      2 days ago

      I know that one of the things that both reduces traffic jams and enhances walk/bike/live-ability is selective removal of motor vehicle passages.

      You take a street in a dense area with lots of motor vehicle traffic, and convert it to pedestrian/cycling only. It’s counterintuitive, but it can work.

    • Cris@lemmy.worldEnglish
      3·
      2 days ago

      Honestly I think the best starting point is getting involved in local government.

      Show up to anything related to these sorts of infrastructure issues. Meet folks there who also care about those issues. Look for organized efforts.

      You can also try to research local groups involved in these civic planning issues and start trying to participate with them. But ultimately the way you solve these problems is by getting involved, looking for more ways to participate in the decision making itself, and organizing with other people :)

  • MystValkyrie@lemmy.blahaj.zoneEnglish
    3·
    2 days ago

    So true. Infrastructure issues aside, car insurance companies are horrible and need to be taken down a peg. I hate being legally required to buy insurance on a beater car I’ve already paid off because American health insurance is terrible and has shifted responsibility in collision-related healthcare to car owners.

  • lemmy_acct_id_8647@lemmy.worldEnglish
    3·
    2 days ago

    As someone who couldn’t drive for several years due to epilepsy, and living in an area with precisely zero public transportation, can confirm. My mental health improved dramatically once I felt I was in control of when and where I could go again.

    And the public transportation bit is the biggest hurdle in the US. It’s a very spread out country and public transportation, trains, and the like are not seen as a priority for those spending the tax dollars.

  • CompactFlax@discuss.tchncs.deEnglish
    2·
    2 days ago

    Makes sense. Paying thousands of dollars in order to be able to travel from the place people live to the place people get food isn’t natural.