An op/ed by Eduardo Porter in today's New York Times makes a passing suggestion that by reducing the number of people who do solo car commutes, congestion pricing would make New Yorkers happier.
I can say this for sure: If it also reduces the number of honking, revving, careening and exhaust-spewing sociopaths clogging New York City streets in their gigundo sedans and sports utes it'll definitely make me happier. I don't know if it's just me or if for some reason there has been a sudden increase in idiotic driving and needless horn-blasting but lately I find myself wanting to take a sledgehammer to lots of New York City drivers' windshields. I suppose this sinks me pretty far down in the happiness rankings. Here's an excerpt:
The framers of the Declaration of Independence evidently believedthat happiness could be achieved, putting its pursuit up therealongside the unalienable rights to life and liberty. Thoughgovernments since then have seen life and liberty as deserving ofvigorous protection, for all the public policies aimed at increasingeconomic growth, people have been left to sort out their happiness.
Thisis an unfortunate omission. Despite all the wealth we have accumulated— increased life expectancy, central heating, plasma TVs andventi-white-chocolate-mocha Frappuccinos — true happiness has laggedour prosperity...
Despite happiness’ apparently Sisyphean nature, there may be ways toincrease satisfaction over the long term. While the extra happinessderived from a raise or a winning lottery ticket might be fleeting,studies have found that the happiness people derive from free time orsocial interaction is less susceptible to comparisons with other peoplearound them. Non-monetary rewards — like more vacations, or more timewith friends or family — are likely to produce more lasting changes insatisfaction.
This swings the door wide open for governmentintervention. On a small scale, congestion taxes to encourage people tocarpool would reduce the distress of the solo morning commute, whichapparently drives people nuts.
AARON NAPARSTEK is the founder and former editor-in-chief of Streetsblog. Based in Brooklyn, New York, Naparsteks journalism, advocacy and community organizing work has been instrumental in growing the bicycle network, removing motor vehicles from parks, and developing new public plazas, car-free streets and life-saving traffic-calming measures across all five boroughs. Naparstek is the author of "Honku: The Zen Antidote for Road Rage" (Villard, 2003), a book of humorous haiku poetry inspired by the endless motorist sociopathy observed from his apartment window. Prior to launching Streetsblog, Naparstek worked as an interactive media producer, pioneering some of the Web's first music web sites, online communities, live webcasts and social networking services. Naparstek is currently in Cambridge with his wife and two young sons where he is enjoying a Loeb Fellowship at Harvard University's Graduate School of Design. He has a master's degree from Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism and a bachelor's degree from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. Naparstek is a co-founder of the Park Slope Neighbors community group and the Grand Army Plaza Coalition. You can find more of his work here: http://www.naparstek.com.
A Seattle police officer sparked outrage when he joked that the death of pedestrian Jaahnavi Kandula might be settled for as little as $11,000. Some families get even less.
“Our job now is to prioritize solutions that mitigate the impacts of climate change while equitably improving quality of life. To do so we need to rethink how we build so Californians can drive less."
Whether it's from degradation or the dust resulting from wear and tear, it's becoming increasingly clear that tire and brake emissions are harmful, perhaps even exceeding tailpipe emissions.